HARVARD  UNIVERSITY 


LEGE 


.;i  '-'-h^m. 


Ex  Libris 

Cat  and  Henry  H.  Bucher 


Ijdyth'C^ 


X 


/ 


■'4 


COLONEL  C.  CHAILLE   LONG-BEY. 


CENTEAL  AFEICA: 


NAKED  TRUTHS  OF  NAKED  PEOPLE. 


AN  ACCOUNT  OF  EXPEDITIONS  TO  THE 

LAKE  VICTORIA  NYANZA  AND  THE  MAKRAKA  NIAM-NIAM, 

WEST  OF  THE  BAHR-EL-ABIAD  (WHITE  NILE). 


By  col.  C.  JDR AlLLt  LONG, 

OF   THE   EGYPTIAN   STAFF. 


ILLUSTRATED  FROM  COLONEL  LONG'S  OWN  SKETCHES. 


Forsan  et  liiEC  olim  meniiniese  juvabit.— V[kqil. 


NEW    YORK: 

HARPER    &    BROTHERS,    PUBLISHERS, 

FRANKLIN      SQUARE. 

18  77. 


Entered  according  to  Act  of  Congress,  in  the  year  1876,  by 

Hakper   &  Brothers, 

In  the  Office  of  the  Librarian  of  Congress,  at  Wasliington. 


INTRODUCTION. 


On  the  evening  of  tlie  21st  of  July,  1875,  in 
response  to  an  invitation  from  "  La  Societe  de 
Geographic  de  Paris,"  I  had  the  honour  to  address 
them  upon  a  subject  .which  has  awakened  in  France, 
as  elsewhere  in  Europe,  the  most  profound  interest 
and  sympathy — Expeditions  in  Central  Africa. 

The  Volume  which  I  now  present  to  the  public 
is  but  a  reproduction  of  the  history  of  adventure 
and  exploration,  of  which  an  analysis  only  was 
then  given;  and  it  occurs  to  me  that  I  cannot 
introduce  it  more  appropriately  than  by  the  trans- 
lation of  my  preliminary  remarks  made  on  that 
occasion : — 

"  For  several  years  an  officer  in  the  Egyptian 
Army,  I  come  more  as  a  soldier  than  as  a  savant, 
to  submit  to  this  distinguished  Society  a  resume 
of  the  incidents  and  results  of  two  Expeditions 
which  I  have  recently  made  in  Central  Africa — 
one  to  the  Lake  Victoria  Nyanza,  and  the  other 
to  the  Makraka  Niam-Niam  country. 


VI  INTRODUCTION. 

""Your  illustrious  geographer,  Malte-Brun,  lias 
properly  said  that  '  Egypt  attaches  Africa  to  the 
civilized  world ; '  and  that  *  Africa  is  now  the  last 
portion  of  the  civilized  world  which  awaits  at  the 
hands  of  Europeans  the  salutary  yoke  of  legis- 
lation and  culture.' " 

Although  it  is  not  a  European  who  has  devoted 
himself  to  this  great  work,  it  is  one  whose  elevated 
soul  and  advanced  ideas  have  placed  him  in  the 
first  rank  of  the  progressive  spirits  of  the  cen- 
tury, and  made  him  in  this  regard  the  type  and 
pioneer  of  its  civilization.  He  is  not  unknown  to 
you,  for  the  world  appreciates  the  genius  of  Ismail 
Pacha,  the  Khedive  of  Egypt,,  who,  inspired  alike 
by  the  aspirations  of  Mehemet  Ali  and  the  tradi- 
tions of  the  Roman  epoch,  has  crowned  the 
splendours  of  his  reign  by  the  triumphant  solution 
of  the  problem  of  the  Sources  of  the  Nile. 

Influenced  by  the  judgment  of  kind  and,  per- 
haps, too  indulgent  friends,  I  have  prepared  for 
publication  these  "  Naked  Truths  of  Naked 
People  "  in  the  crude  language  of  a  soldier,  and 
with  the  view  alone  of  faithfully  recounting  the 
stirring  incidents  of  my  different  expeditions  ;  of 
promulgating  correct  views  respecting  the  country, 
the  nature  and  customs  of  the  negro,  and  of  pay- 
ing an  appropriate  tribute  to  the  character  of  the 
enlightened  Sovereign,  under  whose  auspices  the 
work  of  Central  African  regeneration  is  being 
carried  forward. 


CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER   I. 

PACK 

Appointed  Chief  of  Staflf — Farewell  to  Friends  at  Cairo 
and  Departure  for  Suez — Meet  with  M.  Ferdinand 
de  Lesseps — Arrival  at  Suez  and  Departure  for  and 
Arrival  at  Souakim—  Bishareen  or  Amri  Arabs       .  1 

CHAPTER  ir. 

Departure  for  Berber — Camel-riding — Solitude  of  the 
Desert — Arrival  at  Hiab — The  "  Ship  of  the  Desert" 
— Arrival  at  Berber — Beautiful  Gardens  of  Sheik 
Halifa— Boat  life  on  the  Nile— The  Tiger  of 
Shendy — Assassination  of  Ismail  Pacha — Arrival  at 
•  Khartoum      ........         7 

CHAPTER   III. 

Khartoum — Its  Present  and  Futui*e — Reception  by  the 
Governor  General — The  Austrian  Catholic  Mission 
— Dine  with  the  Governor  General— The  "  Sou- 
danieh  Corps  " — Their  Amusements — Dancing  Girls 
at  Khartoum — Removal  of  the  "  Sod  "  (Matted 
Grass)  from  the  Nile — Destruction  of  Hippopotami 
— Abou  Saoud        ,         .         .         .         .         .         .       H 


Vlll  CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER  IV. 

PAGE 

Embark  for  Gondokoro — Confluence  of  the  waters  of  the 
Bahr-el-Azrak  and  the  Bahr-el-Abiad — Hassanieh 
and  Bagarrah  Arabs — Island  of  Meroe  and  the 
Queen  of  Sheba-Fashoda— The  Chillouks— The 
Dinkas — Kam  Kom — The  river  Saubat — Wretched 
state  of  the  inhabitants — Their  extreme  ignorance 
— Ant-hills — Bor — Arrival  at  Gondokoro        .         .       22 

CHAPTER   V. 

Gondokoro— The  "  Canissa  "—Graves  of  Mr.  Higgin- 
botham  and  M.  Auguste  Linant  —  Destructive 
powers  of  the  White  Ants — Loron,  the  great  Sheik 
of  the  Bari — His  Wife  and  Daughters — The  Go- 
vernor General  returns  to  Khartoum — Despondency 
— The  connexion  of  the  Lakes  Victoria  and  Albert, 
the  Problem — Ba  Beker — Death  of  Livingstone — 
Determine  on  the  Journey — My  Companions — My 
Staff— My  Horse  "  Ugunda  "—Heavy  Rains  ,         .       32 

CHAPTER   VL 

Violent  Storms  and  Rains — Affair  at  Mrooli — M'Tse, 
King  of  Ugunda — Connexion  of  the  Lakes  Victoria 
Nyanza  and  Albert — Desire  to  solve  the  Problem — 
Preparations  to  Depart — My  escort — Ba  Beker — 
Description  of  my  "  personnel  " — Death  of  my  horse 
— The  Dongolowee — Bid  Raouf  Bey  a  last  adieu — 
Cross  the  "  Hor-el-Ramle  "— "  Gebel-el-Kelb  "— 
Hadid,  the  Iron  Man  of  Fatiko — The  Mogi  Country 
— -Massacre — Prepare  for  an  Attack  from  the  Mogi 
Tribe — Their  mass  in  front  attacked  and  dispersed 
— The  Lahore — The  Bahr-el-Asua — Miani's  Tree 
— Utter  break-down  of  Kellerman — Porters  dying 
of  fatigue  are  left  unburied — Address  of  Gimmoro 
— Arrival  at  Fatiko — Received  with  enthusiasm  by 
the  Garrison  ......         .         .         ,39 


CONTENTS.  IX 

CHAPTER   VII. 

PAGE 

Fatiko,  its  strong  position  — Adjutant-Major  Abdallah — 
Lango  and  Lobbohr — Wat-el-Mek — Merissa — Un- 
savoury Milk — Dances  of  the  Soudanieh  Soldiers — 
March  Southward — Jungles,  bogs — Elephant  holes 
— Fetid  odours — Son  of  the  ex-king  Rionga — Pre- 
pare to  cross  the  Nile — Dangers  from  Hippopotami 
and  Crocodiles — Successful  Passage  of  the  River — 
Foueira — Reception  of  Said  and  Abd-el-Rahman  by 
their  former  Comrades — The  ex-king  Rionga — Keba 
Rega — Riongi  Pottery — Obliged  to  leave  the  Albert 
Nyanza  question  partially  unsolved         ...       66 


CHAPTER   VIII.  j 

March    Southward — Changes  in  my  troop — Arrival  at  ii 


Kissembois — Kindly  received  by  Rionga — Mosqui- 
toes— Jungle  fever — Pinto — Depart  for  Uguuda 
— Cruelty  of  a  Sheik — Filthy  water — River  Kafou 
— General  sickness — Uninteresting  scenery — Fire 
*'  against  the  country  " — Morako,  the  Sheik,  makes 
a  raid — Enter  Ugunda — Dreadful  Roads  of  Putrid 
Mud — The  Grand  Kahotah — Invitation  to  Ugunda 
— Arrest  of  Ibrahim,  my  Dragoman — Illness  of  Said 
— We  march,  preceded  by  the  Kahotah,  to  the  Court 
of  M'Tse— Flag  of  Ugunda— Body-guards  of  M'Tse 
— Halted  in  front  of  the  Palace — Taken  for  a 
Centaur — Led  to  my  Zeriba — Sound  repose    .         .       80 


CHAPTER  IX. 

Receive  a  Messenger  from  M'Tse — I  set  out  and  enter 
within  the  Palace — Met  by  M'Tse — Interview  with 
M'Tse  seated  on  his  Throne — His  Ministers  make 
their  reports — The  Kahotah  seriously  compromised, 
saved  by  my  excuse — I  address  the  King  in  Arabic 
— Dreadful  Sacrifice  of  thirty  victims  in  honour  of 


CONTENTS. 


PAGE 


my  visit — Unjust  imputations  of  Livingstone  on 
Speke — The  interview  finished  M'Tse  shows  me  his 
Hareem — I  return  to  my  Zeriha — Sufferings  from 
Cold  and  want  of  Fuel 101 


CHAPTER  X. 

Presents  for  M'Tse — He  is  delighted  with  the  Electric 
Battery — My  desire  to  visit  the  Lake  granted,  but 
my  return  by  the  River  refused — His  dread  of  Keba 
Rega — Human  Sacrifices — Illness  of  myself  and 
Staff — The  Ugunda  language — Ibn  Batutah — The 
Negro  Race — M'Tse's  Arab  MS. — Invited  to  the 
Palace — Anxieties  of  my  Staff  on  my  proposal  to 
return  by  the  River — I  suffer  from  Delirium — Ba 
Beker  becomes  my  bitter  enemy — Ugunda :  features 
of  the  country;  its  products;  its  industry,  trade, 
«&c. — Its  Government,  arms,  population — Its  Saluta- 
tions— On  slightly  recovering  I  am  invited  to  the 
Palace — On  my  arrival  another  Sacrifice  takes 
place,  the  price  of  his  granting  my  request — Appre- 
hensions of  Said  and  Abd-el — At  M'Tse's  request  I 
put  them  through  the  Manual  Exercise — I  take 
leave  of  M'Tse  and  prepare  to  start  for  the  Lake 
Victoria  Nyanza — Delayed  by  illness — News  of 
Lieutenant  Cameron       .         .         .         .         .         .112 


CHAPTER  XL 

Start  for  the  Lake  Victoria  Nyanza — Murchison  Creek 
— Description  of  the  boats — Land  for  the  Night — 
Nogarah — The  Fleet — Waters  of  the  Lake — Sound- 
ings— Islands  in  the  Lake —  M'Tse  gives  secret 
instructions  not  to  cross  the  Lake — I  reluctantly 
return  to  Murchison  Creek — Discover  Selim — 
Attacked  with  fever — Baulked  by  Ba  Beker — I 
make  preparations  to  depart  for  Foueira  .         ,136 


CONTENTS.  •  XI 

CHAPTER  XIL 

PACK 

Presents  from  M'Tse — Depart  from  Ugunda— The  cli- 
mate of  the  Equator — Hostility  of  the  Mtongoli  and 
his  men — Desertion  of  the  escort — I  complain  to 
M'Tse  and  recover  some  of  my  luggage — Our 
marches  continually  interrupted  by  deluges  of  rain 
— Dense  forests — A  Marsalah  brings  me  food — 
Arrival  at  Urondogani — A  Mtongoli  presents  me 
with  eight  young  ladies  from  M'Tse — Three  of 
them  marry  my  Soldiers — Daughter  of  M'Tse — 
Punishment  of  Ibrahim — Marches  by  the  river — 
Head-quarters  of  the  Admiral  of  the  River  Fleet — 
Hospitalities — My  horse  Ugunda  —  Present  re- 
maining young  ladies  to  the  faithful  Mtongoli — 
Retain  the  boys — Selim 144 

CHAPTER  XIII. 

The  Descent  of  the  river — The  small-pox — Keba 
Rega's  Boat — Desertion  of  my  Escort,  who  fear  to 
advance  or  return — Panic  of  my  St&ff — Instructions 
to  Selim — We  start  again — Encountered  by  a  Storm 
we  land  for  the  night — Flight  of  Savages — Gebel 
M'Tingi — Torrents  of  rain — Lake  Ibrahim — Lilies 
— Papyrus  Jungles — Savages — Continual  Storms — 
Endeavour  to  find  the  Bed  of  the  River — The  Polar 
Star,  our  beacon  of  safety — The  boats  filling  with 
water  we  are  in  great  danger — We  regain  the  river 
— We  are  compelled  to  land — Anxiety  to  meet 
Selim 156 

CHAPTER  XIV. 

Entering  the  Stream  I  fire  a  signal — No  response — 
Hostile  fleet  of  Boats  sent  by  Keba  Rega — Parley 
with  the  Sheik — We  attack — The  Leader  is  killed 
— Several  Boats  with  their  Crews  sunk — I  am 
wounded — The  Savages  renew  the  attack,  but  are 


XU  CONTENTS. 

PAGE 

finally  dispersed  by  our  fire,  and  make  for  the  Shore 
— Heavy  losses  of  the  Savages — Fire  my  only 
Eocket,  which  fails — Adam  and  Kellerman — Mount 
Kikungura — Distant  Nogarah  heard — Detachment 
from  Foueira — Meet  old  Comrades — Ludicrous  inci- 
dent— Meet  Baba-Tuka  and  the  ex-king  Rionga — 
Foueira — The  Problem  of  the  Albert  Nyanza  re- 
luctantly abandoned — Pleasant  Reunion    .         .         .174 

CHAPTER  XV. 

Short  stay  at  Foueira — I  charge  Keba  Rega  with  the 
attack  at  Mrooli — Suleiman  now  Ambassador  replies 
— Wat-el-Mek— The  Slave-Trade— My  Men  im- 
prove in  Health  at  Foueira — My  wound  slowly  heals 
— Suicide  of  a  Mtongoli  from  jealousy — Negro 
honour — Capture  of  a  huge  Boa — Selim  and  Sulei- 
man, my  Sais,  with  the  four  disobedient  Mtongoli, 
arrive  in  Camp — Punishment  of  Selim  for  not  obey- 
ing orders — The  Mtongoli  appealing  to  me,  I  write 
to  M'Tse  on  their  behalf — Messenger  from  Fatiko — 
Unable  to  receive  assistance  from  the  garrison  I  pre- 
pare to  leave  Foueira       .         ,         .         .         .         .188 

CHAPTER  XVI.  • 

I  bid  farewell  to  Foueira  and  Baba-Tuka — Crossing  the 
river  we  march  through  the  jungle — Arrive  at  Fatiko 
— Receive  a  warm  welcome — Kindness  of  Adjutaut- 
Major  Abdallah — Visited  by  the  Sheiks— Character 
of  the  Fatiki — I  am  attacked  with  Fever  and  De- 
lirium— Receiving  an  escort  and  convoy  for  ivory,  I 
leave  Fatiko — Old  Bakhite — Cross  the  Hor-el- 
Asua — Laughable  Scene — Unmolested  by  the  Mogi 
— Cross  the  Hor-el-Ramle — Regaf — Tiib  Agha,  the 
Commandant,  tells  me  the  vague  Rumours  that  pre- 
ceded us — Arriving  at  Gondokoro,  welcomed  by  the 
Governor  General  and  Abou  Saoud — Death  of  M. 
Auguste  Linant        .         .         .         .         .         .         .198 


CONTENTS.  Xlll 

CHAPTER  XVII. 

PAGE 

Interval  between  the  Ugunda  Expedition  and  the  Expedi- 
tion to  Makraka  Niam-Niam — Return  to  Khartoum 
— Despatches  of  the  Governor  General  to  his  High- 
ness— Reply  of  his  Highness,  the  Prince  Minister  of 
War,  Hussein  Pacha,  announcing  my  Nomination  as 
Colonel,  and  Decoration  — My  deplorable  State — Con- 
valescence and  dinner  at  Palace  of  Djaffer  Pacha — 
Consul  General  Hanzell — Visit  of  Abou-Saoud — 
Return  to  Lado — Passing  exploration  of  the  Saubat 
— Preparations  for  the  Expedition  to  Makraka  Niam- 
Niam       . ' 212 


CHAPTER   XVIII. 

Departure  from  Lado — Halt  at  Laguno — Entertained  b}' 
the  Sheik  Morbi,  w^ho  accompanies  us — The  Mak- 
raka Niam-Niatn  pictured  to  the  troops  as  a  Moham- 
medan Paradise — Excessive  heat — "  Simmim  "  butter 
—"Striking  oil"— Gebel  Meri— Gebel  Miah— The 
dead  rider — The  Yanbari — Fortified  Zeribas — Poi- 
soned weapons  —  Euphorbes  Arborescentes  —  Give 
presents  to  the  Sheik  of  the  Yanbari — One  of  my 
soldiers  wounded — The  arrow  being  poisoned  he  dies 
— The  "  Hor  Yeh  " — Camp  of  Latroche — Settlement 
of  my  force  in  two  detachments — Collection  of  300 
to  400  young  girls—  Several  of  them  are  married  to 
the  force — Inhabitants  slightly  Anthropophagic — The 
Niam-Niam  demand  revenge  on  the  Yanbari — Start 
for  Makraka  Assariah 24() 


CHAPTER  XIX. 

The  Sheik  of  Makraka -"Ticki-Ticki,"  Akka  woman- 
Interesting  interview  with  her — Hear  of  a  race  west- 
ward of  Makraka  with  monstrous  ears — The  Sheik 
Parafio— His    numerous  wives  and  children— Gebel 


XIV  CONTENTS. 

PAGK 

Lingeterre— Fadlallah— The  "Mittoo"  tribe— "Goo- 
rah-Goorah,"  a  present  from  Fadlallah — Takeu  ill  at 
Khartoum,  I  am  compelled  to  leave  her — Anthropo- 
phagy, the  result  of  necessity — The  Niam-Niam  Ant- 
eaters — Marriage — Night  attack  by  a  Dongolowee — 
Return  to  Makraka  Assariah — "Congo"  dance — ' 
Elephant  Hunting — Achmet  Agha  —  Grand  dance — 
Music— Prepare  to  return — Enlistment  of  Niam- 
Niam  men — Mundo  Niam-Niam  Boy — Abou  Lange  .  262 

CHAPTER   XX. 

Return  to  Lado — Irregulars  advanced  to  the  "  Yeh  " — 
Join  them  in  the  morning — Improved  health  and 
spirits — The  Yanbari  oppose  our  passage  through  a 
defile — Their  complete  Defeat  by  the  Niam-Niam  and 
my  regular  force — Burning  of  villages — Suspicious 
fires — Cannibalism  of  the  Niam-Niam — Imminent 
peril  from  a  Boa — Snake  stories — Monstrous  Flies — 
Arrival  at  Lado — Received  with  honours  by  the 
garrison — Firmans  of  Sultan  Abd-el-Aziz  and  his 
Highness  the  Khedive  conferring  on  me  the  Order 
of  the  Medjidieh  and  the  rank  of  Colonel — With 
suggestions  as  to  Keba  Rega,  Rionga,  the  Dongolo- 
wee, &c.,  I  return  to  Cairo       .....  283 

CHAPTER   XXI. 

Departure  for  Cairo — Said  and  Abd-el-Rahman  accompany 
me — Arrival  at  Khartoum — The  captive  Sultan  of 
Darfour — Arrival  at  Berber — Hamed  Halifa — Major 
Prout — Cross  the  Desert  on  a  Camel — The  Mirage — 
Korosko — Assouan — Philae — Meet  some  Euiopean 
Friends — Siout — Arrival  at  Cairo — Receive  a  Mes- 
sage from  his  Highness  the  Khedive — Summoned  to 
the  Palace,  I  make  my  presents  to  his  Highness,  of  my 
Ethnological  specimens,  &c. — Said  and  Abd-el-Rah- 


CONTENTS.  XV 

VAGIi 

man  receive  Promotion  and  the  Medjidieh  at  the 
Court  of  his  Highness  the  Khedive — Inauguration  of 
New  Geographical  Society  at  Cairo ....  293 

CHAPTER  XXII. 

Results  of  the  Expedition  to  Ugunda  and  the  Lake  Vic- 
toria Nyanza — Also  of  the  Expedition  to  the  Malc- 
raka  Niam-Niam  Country — Sir  Samuel  Baker  and 
the  width  of  the  River  at  Mrooli — My  opinion  of  the 
Negro — Mr.  Stanley  and  the  conversion  of  M'Tse — 
The  Slave-Trade  and  the  Khedive — Seyyid  Burgash 
and  Zanzibai" — The  opening  up  of  the  Interior  by  the 
Soudan  Railway  and  River  Communication  the  most 
effectual  means  for  the  regeneration  of  Central 
Africa     .........  305 

Postscript 316 


APPENDIX. 

jjote— the  River  Juba 327 

Vocabulary  of  Words  selected  from   Languages  spoken  by 

Tribes  in  Central  Africa 329 


LIST   OF   ILLUSTRATIONS. 


PAGE, 

Col.  C.  Chaille  Long,  Egyptian  Array    .  ,  Frontispiece 

Bishareen  or  Amri  Arab         ......         6 

"View  of  Khartoum         .......       14 

Scene  on  the  Bahr-el-Abiad  ......       28 

View  of  Gondokoro       .......       32 

Successful  Passage  of  the  River     .         .         .         .         .75 

Flag  of  Ugunda    ........       96 

Airival  at  the  Palace  of  M'Tse 1*02 

Sacrifice  of  Victims  in  honour  of  Visit  to  King  M'Tse    .     106 
M'Tse,  daughter  of  King  M'Tse    .         .         .         .         .151 

Ugunda  Boy  .         .         .         .  .  .         .         .155 

Attacked  by  the  Fleet  of  Keba  Rega      .         .         .         .177 

Capture  of  a  Boa  Constrictor  .  .         .         .         .193 

Euphorbes  Arborescentes       ......     254 

"  Ticki-Ticki,"  Akka  Woman 264 

Makraka  Niam-Niam  and  Ticki-Ticki    ....     267 

Parafio  and  (sample)  Wife     ......     268 

IS iam-Niam  girls  catching  Ants      .....     274 

Mundo,  a  Niam-Niam  Boy  of  Twelve  Ycais  .  .         .281 

Attacked  by  the  Yanbari 286 

Said  Bagarrah  and  Abd-el-Rahman         ....     302 


.N.-W  Viirk .  Ilarpe  i  I'.n.il.i 


CENTEAL    AFEICA. 


CHAPTER  I. 

Appointed  Chief  of  Staff— Farewell  to  Friends  at  Cairo  and 
Departure  for  Suez — Meet  with  M.  Ferdinand  de  Lesseps 
— Arrival  at  Suez  and  Departure  for  and  Arrival  at 
Souakim — Bishareen  or  Amri  Arabs. 

The  morning  of  the  21st  of  February,  1874,  a 
special  train  was  in  waiting  at  the  Cairo  station, 
to  convey  to  Suez  Colonel  C,  Gr.  Gordon,  C.B.,  of 
.the  Royal  Engineers  of  the  English  army,  the 
newly-appointed  Governor  General  of  the  Equa- 
torial Provinces  of  Egypt,  whose  objective  point,  as 
prospective  seat  of  government,  was  Gondokoro, 

In  the  twenty-four  hours  preceding  departure 
the  VTriter  had  been  designated,  by  request  of 
Colonel  Gordon,  as  Chief  of  Staff  of  the  Expedi- 
tion, and  with  him  Lieutenant  Hassan  Wassif, 
Aide-de-Camp,  also  an  officer  of  the  General  Staff 
of  the  Egyptian  army. 

A  host  of  friends  were  in  attendance  to  bid  me 

adieu  ;  not  alone  my  comrades  in  arms,  but  many 

from  a  large  circle  of  friends  from  the  European 

B 


^  CENTRAL   AFEICA. 

colony,  with  whom  during  my  several  years  of 
service  in  Egypt  a  strong  reciprocal  attachment 
existed.  A  kindly  interest  evinced  in  my  fate  in 
the  hazardous  expedition  undertaken,  and  a  warm 
and  generous  sympathy  on  my  return  to  Cairo, 
merit  mention  here,  as  a  poor  tribute  of  gratitude 
for  what  must  ever  be  to  me  a  source  of  pleasant 
reminiscence.  Central  Africa,  with  all  its  seduc- 
tive fields  of  allurement  to  the  adventurous,  could 
not  but  be  regarded  as  a  bourne  from  which  but 
few  travellers  returned,  a  path  of  glory  that  led 
but  to  the  grave :  in  this  sense,  without  doubt, 
the  kindly  and  affectionate  adieux  were  proffered. 
Alas !  that,  from  among  that  sympathetic  circle 
on  that  morning,  on  more  than  one,  who  with 
anxious  face  waved  me  a  last  farewell,  the  cold 
hand  of  death  was  to  be  laid,  ere  my  return  from 
months  of  community  with  what,  in  advance, 
seemed  to  devote  me  to  a  like  fate.' 

To  resume,  Ibrahim-Bey  Tewfick,  then  an 
officer  of  the  Staff,  had  been  appointed  by  his 
Highness  the  Khedive  to  accompany  this  advanced 
guard  of  the  expedition  to  Suez,  where  the 
steamer  "  Latif  "  was  already  in  waiting. 

The  rear-guard,  that  was  left  to  follow  with  all 
the  stores  and  equipment,  was  in  charge  of  Major 
Campbell.     It  counted  in  its  ranks  M.  Auguste 

^  Auguste  Linant  de  Bellefonds  died  at  Gondokoro  ;  Major 
Campbell,  at  Kliai  toum  ;  Colonel  F.  Reynolds  at  Ilium,  New 
York. 


ARRIVAL   AT    SUEZ.  3 

Linant  de  Bellefonds  and  others,  conspicuous 
among  wliom  was  the  now  famous  "  Abou  Saoud," 
released  from  prison,  and  made  a  member  of  the 
expedition  at  the  instance  of  the  successor  of  Sir 
Samuel  Baker. 

Nothing  of  note  marked  the  transit  to  Suez 
save  that  M.  Ferdinand  de  Lesseps,  the  Father  of 
the  Suez  Canal,  who,  in  company  with  two  young 
ladies  of  his  household  had  left  Ismailia  on  horse- 
back, and  being  overtaken  by  the  shades  of  night 
when  near  our  halted  train,  asked  to  be  taken 
into  our  waggon,  accompanying  us  as  far  as  the 
station  "  Bir-Nefiche ;"  where  to  our  great  regret 
they  left  us,  not  without,  however,  a  pressing 
invitation  to  stop  the  night  at  Ismailia,  an  honour 
that  we  were  forced  to  decline. 

The  train  arrived  at  Suez  at  midnight,  where, 
through  very  winding  ways,  we  found  at  last 
that  "  British  Hotel "  whose  name  should  rather 
be  "  Supplice  des  Voyageurs."  To  run  the  muck 
of  its  dirty  Indian  servants  and  abominable 
"  cuisine  "  without  a  sour  mind  and  a  sour 
stomach,  would  imply  indeed  a  callous  nature. 
As  a  jumping-off  place,  however,  from  civilization 
it  may  serve  to  reconcile  one,  by  comparison,  to 
whatever  ills  prospective  African  travel  may 
impose. 

The  morning  of  the  22nd  hasty  letters  were 
written  and  despatched  from  the  "  Latif,"  the 
boat  desio-nated  to  take  us  to  Souakim.     At  ten 


4  CENTEAL   AFRICA. 

o'clock  the  order  to  heave  anchor  was  given, 
friendly  salutations  were  exchanged,  the  last 
adieu  had  been  said,  our  courteous  escort  had 
gone,  and  the  steamer  was  soon  ploughing 
the  waters  of  the  Gulf  of  Suez.  The  landscape 
was  quickly  fading  out  of  sight.  As  I  looked 
down  from  the  steamer's  deck  into  the  depths  of 
the  mirrored  placid  surface  of  the  waters  that 
day,  they  seemed  to  reflect  sunshine  upon  the 
long  untrodden  path  that  was  to  be  mine,  dis- 
persing the  sombre  shadows  that  would  come  and 
go,  for 

"  A  feeling  of  sadness  comes  o'er  me 
That  my  soul  cannot  resist," 

as  I  think  of  home  and  friends,  and  the 
mysterious  future  that  awaits  me  in  Central 
Africa, 

The  passage  was  made  quickly  and  without 
accident.  The  25th,  at  three  o'clock  p.m.,  we 
arrived  before  Souakim,  whose  low  sea-coast  had 
been  sighted  since  mid-day,  The  formalities  of 
quarantine,  then  existing,  detained  us  till  the 
morning  of  the  26th,  when  we  disembarked  and 
were  hospitably  received  and  entertained  by 
Eliadin  Bey,  the  Governor. 

Souakim  has  been  too  often  described  in  books 
of  travel  to  need  an  extended  notice  here ;  a 
village  built  of  coral  stone,  its  importance  may  be 
inferred  from  the  vast  quantity  of  sacs  of  gum 


BISHAREEN   AND   AMEI   ARABS.  5 

arable  piled  up  on  its  quay,  or  being  placed  in 
boats  by  the  stalwart  negro,  wbose  well-oiled  skin 
alone  protects  him  from  the  blazing  sun  and 
intense  heat  that  is  refracted  from  sand  and 
whitened  coral,  almost  blinding  in  its  rays. 
Other  products  of  the  Soudan  and  Abyssinia  find 
here  easy  export ;  and  occasional  caravans  of 
ivory  seek  this  route  rather  than  the  Korosko 
desert  and  the  Nile,  if  intended  for  the  India  or 
China  trade,  where  the  supply  is  not  equal  to  the 
consumption.  The  natives,  except  the  Arab 
merchants  and  the  negroes  of  the  Soudan,  are  the 
Bishareen  and  Amri  Arabs,  a  mixed  race  of 
pastoral  Nomads,  whose  occupation  here  is  camel- 
driving  in  caravans,  in  the  transit  of  the  desert 
between  this  and  Berber  on  the  Nile,  288  miles 
distant.  These  men  are  of  a  peculiar  type  ;  and  a 
description  of  one  will  answer  for  all. 

A  small  piece  of  cloth  encircles  his  loins ;  short 
in  stature,  with  well  carved,  though  very  delicate 
limbs,  he  resembles  the  gazelle  in  his  quick  and 
graceful  step.  His  food  is  chiefly  goat's  milk. 
His  hair,  grown  to  an  enormous  bushy  mass,  is  a 
subject  of  greatest  care  and  vanity,  and  every 
leisure  moment  on  the  wayside  is  spent  in 
straightening  out,  "  his  knotted  and  combined 
locks,"  over  which  is  spread  a  plaster  of 
tallow  of  deadly  odoured  smell,  which  drips  in 
great  streams  when  in  the  sun,  or  forms  a 
whitened   crust   upon    his    head    and    shoulders 


6  CENTRAL   AFEICA. 

when  not  thus  exposed.  These  people,  however 
indifferent  to  rank  and  position  when  once  you 
are  under  their  escort  in  the  desert,  are  here,  as 
you  meet  them,  ever  ready  to  extend  politeness, 
and  invariably  rise  to  their  feet,  if  seated,  as  you 
pass  them  in  the  streets  or  bazaars.  A  stroll 
through  the  irregular  streets  developes  little  that 
can    interest;    in    its    little    bazaar    are    chiefly 


BISHAEEEN   OE   AMEI  AEAB. 


exposed  articles  of  camel's  harness,  saddles,  and 
ropes,  and  long  knives,  and  a  formidable-looking, 
but  really  inoffensive  sword  with  a  wondrous  huge 
straight  blade.  The  unhealthy  smell  of  grease 
however,  and  a  burning  sun  will,  I  am  sure,  deter 
the  most  ardent  sis^htseer  from"  doino;  "  Souakim 
for  any  length  of  time. 


CHAPTER  11. 

Departure  for  Berber— Camel-riding  — Solitiule  of  the  Desert 
—Arrival  at  Hiab— The  "  Ship  of  the  Desert  "—Arrival 
at  Berber — Beautiful  Gardens  of  Sheik  Halifa — Boat  Life 
on  the  Nile — The  Tiger  of  Shendy — Assassination  of 
Ismail  Pacha — Arrival  at  Khartoum. 

The  28th,  accompanied  by  a  guard  of  fifteen 
soldiers,  the  caravan  provided  for  us  by  Eliadin- 
Bey,  the  Governor,  started  for  Berber,  288  miles 
distant. 

Seven  days  of  forced  marches  on  camel-back, 
by  night  and  day,  is  by  no  means  a  pleasure 
trip ;  the  eccentric  movement  of  the  camel,  the 
monotony,  the  suffering  from  thirst,  and  the  hot 
scorching  waste  of  sand  by  day,  the  cold  by  night, 
the  weird  dusky  figure  of  camel  and  driver  as  he 
silently  creeps  along  in  the  dim  shadow,  all  tend 
to  fatigue  and  sleep.  The  painful  effort  to  resist 
the  latter  becomes  a  torture.  More  than  once,  no 
longer  enchained  by  day  dreams  and  fancies, 
memory  of  home  and  friends,  I  succumbed  to  its 
influence,  and  pitched  headlong  from  the  giddy 
height,  that  for  the  moment  seems  as  high  as 
Olympus  as  you  seek  in  vain  to  arrest  your  fall. 


O  CENTRAL   AFRICA. 

when  bruised  and  half  dead  to  regain  jour  seat, 
with  maledictions  against  camel  locomotion,  or  to 
walk  on  until  you  have  recovered,  by  violent 
exercise,  the  proper  possession  of  your  faculties 
benumbed  by  want  of  rest. 

The  desert  is  a  howling  waste  of  sand ;  whilst 
over  it  a  solitude  reigns  -more  terrible  than  that 
conceived  by  Byron,  when  in  "  Childe  Harold  "  he 
says,— 

"  But  midst  the  crowd,  the  hum,  the  shock  of  men. 
To  hear,  to  see,  to  feel,  and  to  possess, 
And  roam  along,  the  world's  tired  denizen< — 
With  none  who  bless  us,  none  whom  we  can  bless. 

*  w  tF  w  w  w 

This  is  to  be  alone  ;   this,  this  is  solitude." 

This  is  not  all ;  the  trackless  way  is  marked  by 
countless  carcasses  of  camels, and  shapeless  mounds 
of  unnumbered  graves,  rudely  marked  by  heaps  of 
stones,  "  implore  the  passing  tribute  of  a  sigh," 
as  the  last  resting-place  of  the  rude  savage  guide 
of  the  desert.  On  the  3rd  of  March  we  arrived  at 
Hiab,  the  half-way  station  and  watering  spot; 
here,  reposing  for  a  few  hours,  the  Bishareen  and 
Amri  Arabs  collected  around  us.  The  sight  of  an 
empty  bottle  gave  the  wildest  delight,  whilst  the 
exhibition  of  a  small  mirror  caused  them  to  start 
back  affrighted,  and  to  regard  me  with  looks  of 
terror  and  superstition. 

I  extract  from  my  Itinerary  : — 

"  6th  of  March. — '  En   route,'  five  o'clock  p.m.. 


ENDUEANGE    OF   TH0  CAMEL.  9 

marcli  all  night :  painful  naps  upon  the  camel's 
back.  The  whole  party  has  relapsed  into  silence, 
and  the  hitherto  noisy  chatter  of  our  soldier  escort 
is  hushed  in  fatigue.  We  make  continuous  travel 
of  eighteen  hours,  arriving  at  station  '  Obak  '  at 
eleven  o'clock  a.m.  of  the  sixth.  The  heat  is 
excessive,  and  our  guide  reports  that  he  has  lost 
the  track  of  the  well ;  fortunately  we  have  sufficient 
water  for  our  men,  but  the  camels  are  sorely  tried 
and  give  signs  of  failing  strength.  We  find  the 
well  at  last,  and  after  a  meagre  repast  bivouac 
and  go  to  sleep. 

"  It  may  not  be  uninteresting  to  note  here  the 
extravagant  powers  of  endurance  attributed  to 
that  most  useful  '  Ship  of  the  Desert,'  the  camel. 
The  popularly  received  notion  that  the  camel  may 
go  eight  to  ten  days  without  water  has  no  founda- 
tion ;  in  fact,  three  to  four  days  is  the  limit,  and 
unless  his  strength  be  greatly  economized  he  will 
succumb  the  fourth  day.  His  vaunted  docility 
is  generally  the  result  of  advanced  age  ;  for  when 
young  he  is  vicious  and  at  times  ungovernable ;  the 
many  dashes  from  our  ranks  was  a  proof  of  this, 
causing  the  hapless  rider  to  bite  the  dust,  relieving 
often  the  tedium  of  the  route  in  the  merriment 
that  ensued  at  the  mishap.  Unlike-  other  animals 
he  does  not  possess  the  instinct  that  protects  them 
against  poisonous  herbs :  and  the  mostcareful  atten- 
tion on  the  part  of  his  driver  is  necessary  to  avoid 
thenotunfrequentcasesof  his  death  from  this  reason. 


10  CET^THAL   AFRIOA. 

"  8th  of  March. — After  mucli  fatigue  we  reacli 
Berber,  having  accomplished  the  distance  in  eight 
days.  Hamed  Halifa,  the  veteran  Sheik  of  the 
desert  caravans,  receives  us  :  and  invited  to  his 
home,  our  quick  transit  is  a  subject  of  fehcitation 
on  all  sides  (except  my  side) ;  for  bruised  and 
jaded,  I  tacitly  plead  exception  to  the  apprecia- 
tion of  these  doubtless  well-meant  congratula- 
tions." 

Berber  is  a  collection  of  low  mud-huts,  with 
here  and  there  a  building  only  that  has  the  pre- 
tensions of  a  house  of  European  style  or  con- 
struction :  its  tall  palm  and  acacia  trees,  and  the 
beautiful  gardens  of  Sheik  Halifa  give  it  a  certain 
charm  and  beauty,  as  it  rises  like  a  phantom  city 
to  the  vision  of  the  weary  and  heat-oppressed  tra- 
veller, as  he  emerges  from  the  sandy  plains  of 
the  desert. 

The  dress  of  the  Berber  woman  is  very  primitive, 
whilst  the  unmarried  wear  a  simple  leather  fringe 
around  their  loins,  only  this,  and  nothing  more. 

Preparations  having  been  quickly  made,  we 
prepared  to  quit  Berber,  and  on  the  morning  of 
the  9th  of  March,  in  two  nuggers  (Nile  boats),  we 
left  for  Khartoum.  Here  commenced  our  "  boat 
life  on  the  Nile,"  made  up  of  angry  and,  I  fear, 
maledictory  protestations  with  that  great  per- 
sonage the  Re'is, — not  this  one  in  particular,  but 
reises  in  general ;  shooting  at  crocodiles  that  lazily 
sun  themselves  upon  the   "  shallals "   (rocks)   in 


THE    TIGER   OF    SHENDY.  11 

the  river,  that  our  unwilling  boatmen  insisted 
might  not  he  passed  till  "bokara"  (the  mor- 
row). 

March  10th. — We  passed  Shendy,  in  the  past  a 
great  commercial  town,  and  to-day  of  much  impor- 
tance as  an  "  entrepot "  of  caravans  from  Darfour 
and  Kordofan.  Designated  as  the  terminus  of  the 
Soudan  railway  coming  ft-om  Wady  Halfai,  this 
place  is  destined  to  play  no  unimportant  "role" 
in  the  great  flow  of  trade  that  must  pour  from 
its  ancient  trading  grounds,  connecting  with 
Khartoum  by  steamer,  to  which  point  the  naviga- 
tion by  light-draft  steamers  is  always  practicable. 
Shendy  is  no  less  renowned  as  the  place  where 
Ismail  Pacha,  the  son  of  the  great  Mehemet  Ali, 
was  assassinated  in  1821,  and  was  in  reprisal 
razed  to  the  ground  by  the  Egyptians. 

The  story  throws  much  light  on  Eastern 
character.  Sent  by  his  father  to  obtain  tribute 
and  submission  from  the  ferocious  chief  who  had 
been  the  scourge  of  the  country,  and  who  himself 
had  earned  the  soubriquet  of  the  "  Tiger  of 
Shendy  " — the  prince's  first  night  as  an  unbidden 
guest  proved  his  last. 

Pitching  his  tents,  Ismail  summoned  "  the 
Tiger "  to  his  presence,  and  peremptorily  com- 
manded him  to  furnish  large  rations  and  supplies 
for  his  troops  forthwith,  as  well  as  to  pay  a  heavy 
indemnity  the  next  morning.  With  feigned 
humility  the  "  Tiger  of  Shendy  "  pleaded  poverty 


12  CENTRAL    AFRICA. 

of  himself   and    people,   and    declared  his  utter 
inability  to  comply  with  the  demand. 

In  his  wrath  at  this  reply  Ismail  inflicted  upon 
him  the  unpardonable  insult  of  striking  him  over 
the  head  with  the  pipe  which  he  was  smoking, 
saying,  "  Dog  and  liar,  unless  you  immediately 
comply  with  my  orders,  I'll  have  you  scourged 
through  the  camp  by  my  soldiers." 

Apparently  stricken  with  terror,  and  true  to  his 
name,  "  the  Tiger "  crouched,  feigned  immediate 
and  absolute  submission,  and  left  his  unsuspecting 
guest  with  the  remark,  "  You  shall  have,  not  only 
all  the  forage  you  want,  but  more." 

All  that  night,  amid  all  the  gaiety  of  the  camp, 
the  Prince  and  his  suite  remarked  with  satisfac- 
tion the  immense  quantities  of  forage  that  the 
tribe  were  piling  around  the  circuit  of  the 
tents,  especially  the  huge  piles  around  those  of 
himself  and  suite.  They  understood  better  the 
meaning  of  the  "  Tiger's  "  parting  speech  when, 
awakened  before  the  dawn  of  day,  they  found  them- 
selves encircled  by  a  girdle  of  flame  :  to  prevent 
escape  from  which  the  "  Tiger  "  and  his  tribe  with 
levelled  lances  stood  sentry,  until  the  Prince  and 
his  whole  force  were  roasted  alive,  in  revenge  for 
the  insult,  and  Shen^y  thus  made  a  historic  spot. 

Mehemet  Ali  to  avenge  this  reprisal  sent  his 
son-in-law,  the  savage  Defterdar,  who  razed  the 
town,  but  the  "  Tiger  "  escaped  into  the  interior, 
and  was  never  captured  or  punished. 


AliRlVAL    AT   KHAETOUM.  13 

The  12tli  of  March,  we  met  to  our  satisfaction 
a  steamer  sent  by  the  Governor  General  of  Khar- 
toum, Ismail  Pacha  Ayoub,  and  leaving  our  slow 
nugger,  to  go  on  board  the  steamer,  we  arrived 
at  Khartoum  on  the  morning^  of  the  13th  of  March 
— twenty  days  from  our  leaving  Cairo. 


CHAPTER  III. 

Khartoum — Its  Present  and  Future — Reception  by  the  Go- 
vernor General — The  Austrian  Catholic  Mission  —  Dine 
with  the  Governor  General — The  "  Soudanieh  Corps  " — 
Their  Amusements — Dancing  Girls  at  Khartoum — Re- 
moval of  the  "  Sotl  "  (Matted  Grass)  from  the  Nile- 
Destruction  of  Hippopotami— Abou  Saoud. 

Khartoum,  on  the  left  bank  of  the  Bahr-el  Azrak 


VIEW    OF   KHiETOUM. 


(Bhie  Nile),  about  two  miles  south  t'rom  its  con- 
fluence with  the  Bahr-el-Abiad   (White  Nile),  is 


DESCRIPTION   OF    KHARTOUM.  15 

thus  embraced  in  the  acute  angle  formed  by  the 
two  rivers.  A  city  numbering  perhaps  30,000 
inhabitants,  its  commercial  importance  is  already 
recognized  as  a  great  entrepot  of  products  of 
Central  Africa,  the  newly  acquired'  equatorial 
Lake  districts,  and  the  country  south-west  of 
Darfour,  from  which  great  stores  of  ivory  will 
come.  Caravans  of  ivory,  ebony,  ostrich  feathers, 
are  sent  over  the  great  Atmoor  or  Korosko  desert, 
and  find  their  way  to  Cairo  :  whilst  grain  (dourah), 
cotton,  gum,  in  exchange  for  European  goods, 
render  Khartoum  a  place  of  great  commercial 
activity.  The  railroad  in  course  of  construction 
to  Shendy  will  connect  by  steamer  with  this  place  : 
and  will  soon  give  it  importance,  not  alone  as  to 
its  commerce,  but  will  place  a  point  heretofore 
remote  within  easy  distance  of  an  army  of  sight- 
seers, sacred  to  them  perhaps  as  a  horrid  slave 
depot.  Europe,  thus  brought  unceremoniously 
to  the  front  door  of  Central  Africa,  may  then, 
face  to  face  with  the  negro  fresh  from  his 
African  home,  compare  him  with  the  picture  of 
"  Uncle  Tom,"  or  the  sentimental  portraits  that 
have  depicted  him  as  he  ought  to  be,  and  not 
as  he  is. 

The  street  that  borders  the  river-side  looks 
down  upon  the  water  from  a  bluff-like  elevation ; 
here  and  there  are  the  stately  palm-trees  and 
large  gardens  of  citron  and  orange-trees,  whilst 
the  neatly  whitewashed  constructions,  relieved  by 


16  OENTEAL   APEIOA. 

minaret  and  mosque,  give  it  the  air  of  an  Egyptian 
city.  The  streets  are  irregular,  narrow,  and 
badly  drained ;  and  thus  in  the  rainy  season  great 
pools  of  stagnant  water  throw  off  their  deadly 
miasma,  generating  the  fevers  that  are  still 
prevalent,  but  are  yearly  becoming  less  frequent. 
Certainly  outside  of  the  city,  or  on  the  opposite 
bank  of  the  river,  in  the  desert,  I  believe  it  to  be 
perfectly  healthy.  The  European  population  is 
composed  principally  of  Greek,  and  a  few  Italian 
merchants,  chiefly  engaged  in  the  sale  of  wines, 
raki,  beer,  canned  fruits,  meats,  and  vegetables; 
the  Arab,  Turk,  and  Copt  controlling  till  of  late 
years,  the  Dongolowee  element,  that  are  recruited 
here  as  irregular  soldiers,  or  ivory  hunters  for  the 
interior  of  Africa,  by  the  ivory  merchants,  who 
arm,  equip,  and  furnish  them  with  the  necessary 
"  suc-suc  "  (beads)  and  other  trumpery,  for  which 
ivory  is  exchanged  by  the  savage.  A  palace  and 
several  well-built  government  buildings  face  the 
river-side,  where  a  well-built  quay  with  stone 
staircase  gives  easy  descent  to  the  steamers  that 
lie  alongside. 

His  Excellency  the  Governor  General  received 
us  with  marked  attention :  troops  were  paraded, 
and  a  salvo  of  guns  announced  our  arrival.  The 
European  colony  came  to  present  their  respects, 
represented  by  the  Consul  General  of  Austria, 
the  Superintendent  of  the  Soudan  Telegraph,  and 
the  Apostolic  Vicar  of  the  Austrian  Catholic  Mis- 


DINE  WITH  THE  GOVEBNOU  GENERAL.      17 

sion,  whose  immense  building  in  the  midst  of  a 
garden  of  pahn  and  orange  groves  was  a  never- 
ending  source  of  pleasure  to  me  during  my  conva- 
lescence months  afterwards  in  Khartoum,  when  I 
became  the  recipient  of  many  presents  of  fruit  from 
Monseigneur  Camboni,  the  energetic  and  zealous 
head  of  the  Mission.  I  have  to  add  here  my  grate- 
ful obligations  for  the  kindness  and  care  extended 
to  a  comrade  who  died  subsequently  within  its 
hospitable  walls. 

Among  those  who  came  also  to  offer  their 
respects  was  a  very  dirty  Cyclopic  Copt,  with  a 
very  dirty  shirt;  his  Excellency  the  American 
Consul  at  Khartoum,  bought  and  paid  for,  if  you 
please ! 

The  ]8th  of  March  we  were  invited  to  dine 
with  the  Governor  General :  a  large  number  of 
guests  were  assembled,  including  officers  of  the 
army,  in  addition  to  those  mentioned  above.  The 
repast,  served  in  European  style,  left  nothing  to  be 
desired,  and  Mr.  Hanzell,  the  Consul  General,  was 
particularly  happy  in  the  post-prandial  speech 
delivered  in  Arabic,  in  which  in  his  private  and 
official  character  he  wished  success  to  the  succes- 
sor of  Baker  Pacha.  The  spacious  "  divan  "  was 
filled  with  guests,  whilst  the  courtyard  without- 
held  a  battalion  of  soldiers  recruited  from  the 
'•Dinka"  and  "  Chillouk  "  tribes  of  the  Bahr-el- 
Abiad,  and  as  well  a  few  from  the  countries  of 

Darfour  and    Kordofan;    all  happy  in  the   con- 

C 


18  CENTRAL    AFRICA. 

sciousness  of  their  elevated  position  as  soldiers, 
and  pride  of  their  white  uniforms,  in  such  strange 
contrast  to  the  inky  hue  of  their  skin.  These 
different  tribes  compose  the  "  Soudanieh  Corps ;" 
in  face  and  form  ugly,  sometimes  hideous,  they  are 
none  the  less  excellent  and  devoted  soldiers.  To 
beguile  the  tedium  of  time  the  "  theatro,"  or 
dance  and  song,  is  the  almost  nightly  recreation 
in  the  Soudan ;  and  recourse  was  now  had  to  the 
dance,  or  "  Kamalalah,"  as  known  to  the  soldiers. 
Lamps  were  hung  around,  illuminating  a  scene 
new  to  me,  yet  bringing  back  to  memory  scenes  of 
other  days  in  my  far-off  home  in  the  "  sunny 
south  "  when  I  stole  away  from  the  parental  eye 
to  Uncle  Tom's  cabin,  there  to  revel  in  childish 
delight  in  the  dance,  banjo,  and  plantation 
melodies  of  the  happy  Sambo.  The  fiddle  and 
bow  of  "Old  Uncle  Ned"  is  silent  now,  and 
these  scenes  have  "  gone  glimmering  through  the 
dream  of  things  that  were,"  to  give  place  to  the 
busy  wheel  of  progress,  that  has  crushed  beneath 
its  iron  pressure  the  bonds  of  slavery  in  America, 
and  made  the  slave  if  a  wiser,  by  no  means  a 
merrier  man. 

There  was  a  scene  in  the  entertainment  to 
which  I  was  an  entire  stranger.  Twelve  girls  of 
mixed  Abyssinian  type  were  introduced,  who,  with 
shuffling  step  and  a  peculiar  clucking  sound 
made  by  compression  of  the  lips  against  the 
teeth,  moved  in  concert  to  the  tum-tum  evoked 


DANCING   GIRLS    OF    KHARTOUM:.  19 

from  a  tambourine  in  the  hands  of  an  Arab 
musician.  A  girdle  of  leathern  strips  encircled 
the  waist  only  (the  sole  attempt  at  dress) ; 
the  neck,  arms,  and  legs  Avere  encased  in  well- 
wrought  steel  and  copper  bracelets,  whose  clink- 
ing kept  time  to  the  music,  as  they  defiled  in 
review. 

These  girls  are  under  the  superintendence  of  a 
director  or  manag^er :  and  all  neg;otiations  for 
exhibitions,  here  often  called  into  requisition  at 
"  fantasiahs,"  at  reunions,  and  at  marriages,  are 
made  through  him. 

A  just  tribute  should  here  be  rendered  to  Ismail 
Pacha  Ayoub,  the  Governor  General,  for  the 
accomplishment  of  the  removal  of  the  "  sod " 
(matted  grass)  that  had  defied  the  eff'orts  of  Sir 
Samuel  Baker,  barring  the  passage  of  the  river- 
southward  between  the  Bahr-el-Ghazal  and  the 
Bahr-el-Girafie,  and  compelling  the  latter's  retreat 
to  Tewfickeyeh,  in  the  month  of  April,  1870, 
where,  a  few  miles  south  of  the  mouth  of  the 
Saubat,  encamped  in  a  pestiferous  marsh,  many 
fell  victims  to  the  fever.  A  few  weeks  before  our 
arrival,  the  Governor  General  at  the  head  of  a 
battalion  of  Soudan  soldiers  addressed  himself  to 
the  work,  in  order  to  open  communication  with 
Gondokoro,  then  in  his  command.  The  unwieldy, 
putrid  mass  of  vegetable  matter,  after  three  weeks 
of  indefatigable  labour,  yielded  to  the  efforts  of  the 
devoted  band,  many  of  whom  fell  a  prey  to  the 


20  CENTEAL    AFRICA. 

malaria,  malignant  fevers,  and  dysentery,  or  living 
still,  are  victims  to  the  dread  "  guinea  worm,"  that 
infests  the  water  and  marshes  of  these  rivers. 
At  the  moment  that  the  tightly-wedged  mass  of 
"  sod  "  gave  way,  a  mass  of  hippopotami,  with 
which  the  river  from  this  point  to  its  source  is 
wonderfully  full,  were  borne  in  its  inextricable 
embrace,  pressed  in  and  crushed  to  a  jelly,  whilst 
the  air  resounded  with  their  horrid  and  terrified 
roars.  A  Nile  boat  was  carried  away  at  the  same 
time,  and  disappeared  beneath  the  crash  of  "  sod," 
that/ now  with  severed  fragments  was  to  drift 
away  with  the  current. 

The  Governor  General  was  highly  pleased  with 
his  success,  and  assured  us  that  our  journey  to 
Gondokoro  by  steamer  would  be  uninterrupted. 
The  news  was  indeed  grateful ;  for  the  considera- 
tion of  the  means  of  removing  this  obstacle  had 
occupied  our  serious  attention  en  route;  and 
this  accomplished,  our  expedition  began  under 
auspices  that  transferred  at  once  the  scene 
of  operations  to  Gondokoro.  It  may  not  be 
foreign  to  the  subject  to  allude  here  to  the  un- 
favourable impression  produced  upon  government 
officials  and  the  well-wishers  to  the  expedition,  on 
learning  that  Abou  Saoud  was  on  his  way  to  join 
us,  that  he  had  been  renominated ;  and  would  go 
to  Gondokoro  in  connexion  with  the  administra- 
tion of  the  Equatorial  Provinces ;  for  in  Khartoum 
Abou  was  looked  upon  as  inimical  to  the  interests 


APPOINTMENT   OF   ABOU    SAOUD.  21 

of  the  Government  in  these  res-ions.  Reference 
to  him  will  be  hereafter  made,  and  his  true  con- 
nexion with  the  Expedition  and  final  fate  be  fully 
shown. 


CHAPTER   ly. 

Embarl^  for  Gondokoro — Confluence  of  the  waters  of  the 
Buhr-cl-Azrak  and  the  Bahr-el-Abiad — Hassanieh  and 
Bagarrah  Arabs — Island  of  Meroe  and  the  Queen  of 
Sheba — Fashoda — The  Chillouks — Tlie  Dinkas — Kam 
Kom— The  river  Saubat — Wretched  state  of  the  in- 
habitants— Their  extreme  ignorance — Ant-liills — Bor — 
Arrival  at  Gondokoro. 

On  the  morning  of  tlie  22nd  of  March,  every 
preparation  had  been  made  for  departm^e ;  seven 
steamers  then  at  Khartoum  were  to  ply  between 
that  place  and  Gondokoro  in  the  service  of  the 
Equatorial  Provinces.  It  is  but  just  to  say  here 
that  Sir  Samuel  Baker  had  brought  out  from 
England,  and  had  superintended  the  construction 
of  these  boats  of  light  draft,  and  capable  of 
ascending  th'e  Nile  as  far  as  Gondokoro,  the 
highest  navigable  point  north  of  the  Rapids,  if 
I  may  except  a  short  period  during  the  rainy 
season,  when  Gebel  Regaf  may  be  reached,  fifteen 
miles  farther  south,  not  however  without  difficulty. 
Having  breakfasted  "a  la  turque"  with  the 
Governor  General,  we  embarked  on  the  steamer, 
No.  9,  waiting  to  receive  us,  amid  a  salvo  of  guns. 


CONFLUENCE  OP  THE  WATEES.         23 

and  tlie  kind  adieu  of  the  "hundreds  collected  to 
wish  success  to  the  new  Equatorial  Government. 
The  waters  of  the  Bahr-el-Azrak  and  the  Bahr- 
el-Abiad  at  their  confluence  are  clearly  marked,  as 
the  pure  waters  of  the  former  commingle  with  the 
discoloured  waters  of  the  latter.  A  parallel  here 
may  be  drawn  between  the  junction  of  the  waters 
of  the  Mississippi  and  Missouri,  where  the  turbid 
waters  of  the  former  strike  the  limpid  and  tran- 
quil stream  of  the  latter,  projecting  themselves 
across  its  bosom,  making  a  well-defined  line 
of  discoloured  water  in  its  invasion  of  the  purer 
stream. 

As  the  steamer  turns  the  point  at  the  junction, 
and  enters  the  Bahr-el-Abiad  at  a  slackened  speed 
in  stemming  its  swift  current,  I  cast  a  long- 
lingering  look  behind,  as  the  last  haunt  of  civiliza- 
tion fades  from  view,  ere  I  turn  to  brave  the 
uninviting  future  that  awaits  the  traveller  in 
Central  Africa. 

"  Now  Harold  found  himself  at  length  alone, 

And  bade  to  Christian  tongues  a  long  adieu. 
Now  he  adventured  on  a  shore  unknown, 

Which  all  admire,  but  many  dread  to  view. 
His  breast  was  arm'd  'gainst  fate,  his  wants  were  few ; 

Peril  he  sought  not,  but  ne'er  shrank  to  meet. 
The  scene  Avas  savage,  but  the  scene  was  new  ; 

This  made  the  ceaseless  toil  of  travel  sweet." 

The  two  shores  of  the  Bahr-el-Abiad,  for  a 
considerable  distance,  are  not  uninteresting; 
dotted  here  and  there  by  trees  and  undergrowth, 


24  CENTRAL    AFEICA. 

at  intervals  great  flocks  of  wild  geese,  ducks,  and 
pelicans ;  herds  of  cattle  and  slieep  browse  upon 
its  grass-covered  shores.  Further  on,  we  see  the 
straw-mat  huts  of  the  Hassanieh  and  Bagarrah 
Arabs,  who  occupy  both  banks  of  the  river  from 
this  point  till  near  Fashoda;  pastoral  nomads, 
they  resemble  the  Bedouins  of  the  Desert,  whilst 
in  colour,  contour  of  figure,  and  delicate  limbs, 
surrounded  as  they  are  here  on  all  sides  by  negro 
races,  they  invite  a  study  of  their  obscure  origin, 
a  puzzle  to  ethnologists  that  may  not  admit  other 
than  mere  speculation. 

Herodotus  speaks  of  the  Egyptian  troops  to  the 
number  of  240,000  stationed  at  the  isle  of  Ele- 
phantis  (Philae),  who  deserted  to  the  King  of 
Ethiopia,  assigning  as  a  reason  "their  non-payment 
and  non-displacement  for  a  period  of  three  years," 
replying  to  the  expostulations  of  Psammeticus  in 
thus  quitting  their  country  and  wives,  in  terms 
so  "bizarre,"  and  so  untranslateable  "to  ears 
polite,"  that  we  must  refer  thereto,  to  Herodotus 
himself.  M.  Caillaud,  the  celebrated  traveller, 
has  placed  the  residence  of  the  Queen  of  Sheba 
at  the  island  of  "Meroe,"  situated  between  Shendy 
and  Khartoum,  where,  as  he  says,  "  cette  celebre 
reine  d'Ethiopie,  qui  alia  ecouter  les  sages  preceptes 
et  les  tendres  discours  de  Salomon,"  met  him.^ 

May  it  not  be,  that  the   deserting  Egyptians, 

"  This  celebrated  queen  of  Ethiopia,  who  went  and  listened 
to  the  wise  precepts  and  tender  discourses  of  Solomon,"  met  him. 


TBE    OHILLOUKS.  25 

amalgamating  with  the  Ethiopians,  were  the  ances- 
tors of  the  Bagarrah  Arabs  of  whom  we  speak  ? 

The  31st  of  March,  we  arrived  at  Fashoda, 
having  transferred  baggage,  &c.,  to  the  "Bordene," 
a  more  comfortable  steamer  returning  from  Gon- 
dokoro.  Fashoda,  situated  on  the  left  bank  of 
the  Nile,  is  an  outpost  of  the  Government  at 
Khartoum ;  on  its  left  is  a  Chillouk  village  of 
straw-huts ;  the  town  itself  is  a  collection  of 
mud-huts,  with  here  and  there  a  government  build- 
ing of  stone,  a  prison,  and  a  divan. 

Under  the  "  surveillance  "  of  an  affable  officer, 
Colonel  Yusef  Bej,  the  Chillouks  are  being  en- 
couraged to  cultivate  "dourah,"  and  their  condition 
is  being  very  sensibly  ameliorated,  the  land  to  this 
point  being  passably  good. 

From  this  place,  however,  to  Gondokoro,  there  is 
nothing  but  a  sea  of  marshes,  through  whose  slimy 
bed  the  river  Nile  runs  its  extremely  tortuous 
course  for  at  least  1000  miles  ! 

The  2nd  of  April  we  arrived  at  the  mouth  of  the 
river  Saubat :  a  detachment  of  soldiers  here  mark 
the  limit  of  the  administration  of  the  Khartoum 
Government,  and  the  point  where  commences  the 
frontier  of  the  Equatorial  Provinces:  here  we  stop 
for  wood.  The  mosquitoes  attack  with  great 
ferocity,  and  their  bites  are  so  painful  as  to 
render  sleep  impossible ;  this  was  but  one  of  the 
daily  torments  which  we  experienced  in  an  ever- 
memorable  voyage  of  twenty-six  days,  varied  only 


26  CENTRAL   AFRICA. 

by  frequent  shots  at  troops  of  elephants,  buffalo, 
crocodiles,  and  hippopotami,  that  ramped  and 
roared  around  our  boat,  if  "  tied  up  for  wood." 

The  Chillouk  and  the  Dinka  occupy  the  right 
and  left  bank  of  the  river.  In  this  hurried  transit 
no  study  of  these  people  was  possible  ;  it  was  only 
afterwards,inpassing  and  repassing  on  service,  that 
I  was  brought  in  close  connexion  with  these  tribes 
who,  in  common  with  other  negroes,  have  been 
endowed  by  enthusiastic  travellers  with  qualities, 
that  I  regret  to  say,  an  unprejudiced  opinion, 
added  to  a  long  experience  among  negroes,  under 
various  circumstances,  does  not  permit  me  to  cor- 
roborate. I  cannot  do  better  then,  than  quote 
here  an  analysis  of  a  "  resume  "  of  my  travels,  an 
extract  of  a  speech  delivered  before  the  Geo- 
graphical Society  of  Paris,  on  the  21st  of  July, 
1875,  having  the  merit  of  conclusions  drawn  from 
actual  and  painful  observation. 

"  Twenty-six  days  of  navigation  by  steamer 
through  a  region,  where  an  almost  inextricable 
maze  of  jungle-grass  seemed  at  times  to  threaten 
to  bar  completely  the  way,  brought  me  to  the 
Bari  country,  near  Gondokoro;  a  distance  of  about 
1000  miles,  entirely  covered  by  fetid  and  stagnant 
marshes,  over  the  dangerous  surface  of  which 
wander  troops  of  elephants  and  buffaloes.  The 
river  was  full  of  crocodiles  and  hippopotami;  the 
roars  of  the  latter  alone  breaking  the  terrific  silence 
which  reigns  in  these  regions. 


THE     DINK  AS.  27 

"  Later,  on  returning,  feeling  anxious  to  know 
something  about  the  Saubat,  I  went  up  that  river 
nearly  300  miles,  and  learned  that,  farther  on,  at 
nine  days'  march,  was  a  village  called  '  Kam- 
Kom,'  whither  the  Abyssinians  or  Gallas  repair 
for  trading  purposes.  At  a  few  hours'  distance 
from  the  place  where  I  stopped  (called  Manshiah 
by  the  negroes)  flowed  a  river,  which  by  its  direc- 
tion I  supposed  to  be  an  effluent  of  the  Bahr-el- 
Azrak.  I  heard  there  of  an  overland  route,  by 
Avhich  one  might  even  reach  Gondokoro ;  a  fact 
unknown  till  then. 

"  The  banks  of  the  Saubat  present  the  same 
sombre  and  dismal  aspect  as  those  of  the  Bahr-el- 
Abiad.  They  are  inhabited  by  the  Dinkas  and  the 
Nouers.  Like  the  Chillouks  who  dwell  on  the  left 
bank  of  the  Bahr-el-Abiad,  these  people  possess 
none  of  the  ideas  or  qualities  which  had  been  pre- 
viously ascribed  to  them.  First  of  all,  the  Dinka  is 
no  worshipper  of  the  moon ;  he  worships  the  cow. 
The  Chillouk,  who  had  been  introduced  as  the 
founder  of  a  kingdom  in  Sennaar,  seems  by  his 
present  wretched  state  and  miserable  appearance 
to  belie  the  statement  of  his  ever  having  played 
so  grand  an  historical  part.  The  most  deplorable 
conditions  both  of  climate  and  habitation,  are 
alone  sufl&cient  to  have  prevented  the  Chillouk 
from  acting  the  part  of  a  conqueror,  which  has 
been  assigned  to  him.  Let  us  cast  a  closer  glance 
at   the    negroes   encamped  on  the  banks  of  the 


28 


CENTRAL    AFRICA. 


Balir-el-Abiad,  encircled  by  a  row  of  dung-liills, 
to  which  they  set  fire,  either  to  preserve  themselves 
from  the  venomous  bites  of  the  mosquitoes,  or  to 
protect  themselves  during  the*  night  from  the 
attacks  of  the  lions,  leopards,  and  hippopotami. 
Indolent  and  timorous,  the  Chillouk  scarcely  finds 
sufi&cient  means    of  subsistence   in   the   doubtful 


SCENE    ON   TKE    BAHE-EL-ABIAD,    BETWEEN    THE    JUNCTION    OF   THE 


! 


SAUBAT   AND   GONDOKORO. 


pursuit  of  the  wild  beasts  that  surround  him. 
Deprived  of  the  resources  which  fishing  aff'ords 
them,  one  year  would  sufiice  to  annihilate  these 
beings,  among  whom  famine  has  become  a  chronic 
state.  By  the  Chillouk  stands  the  cow,  which  for 
him  supplies  the  place  of  every  other  divinity. 
These  cows,  as  emaciated  as  himself,  give  but  very 


LOW   STATE    OP    CIVILIZATION.  29 

little  milk,  and  tlie   Chillouk  never  kills  them  for 
food.  ^  The  possession  of  this  animal  is  a  guarantee     v/ 
of  freedom;  for  the   Sheik  of  every  negro  tribe 
detains  as  slaves  such  as  do  not  possess  at  least 
one  cow.  ^  ^ 

"  These  people  live  thus  in  idleness,  sheltered 
from  the  burning  rays  of  the  sun  by  a  dense 
curtain  of  smoke.  Besmeared  with  muck  mixed 
with  ashes,  they  seem  yet  more  hideous  with  their 
protuberant  jaws,  the  absence  of  lower  incisors, 
and  their  upper  teeth  projecting  from  their  upper 
jaw  like  the  tusks  of  a  wild  boar.  As  for  a  divi- 
nity, they  have  none  other  but  the  above-men- 
tioned one,  the  cow.  I  may  add  that  many  other 
negro  tribes  are  in  the  same  state ;  and  such  as 
have  any  notions  of  a  God,  hold  them  from  the 
nomad  Arab.  Does  it  not  also  appear  probable 
that  the  different  hues  in  the  colour  of  their 
skin  may  be  imputed  to  miscegenation  with  the 
Arab  and  Indian  ?  " 

The  6thofAj)rll. — The  place  where  the  "sod  "  had 
barred  passage  to  Baker  Pacha,  since  removed  (as 
heretofore  mentioned),  permits  our  uninterrupted 
passage.  On  board  of  our  steamer  are  some  of 
the  soldiers  who  were  employed  in  that  work,  and 
their  legs,  covered  with  great  sores  produced  by  the 
guinea  worm,  give  evidence  of  their  hard  service. 

On  the  8th  of  April  I  go  ashore ;  fire  at  troop 
of  elephants;  hit  one  with  explosive  shell,  but 
he    "  gets    away    beautifully ;"    tumble    into    an 


30  CENTRAL   AFRICA. 

elephant  pit-fall  covered  from  view  by  grass  and 
bushes,  and  extricate  myself  with  difficulty.  The 
savages  come  to  the  steamer  and  beg  for  "  dourah  " 
(corn) ;  their  starved  and  emaciated  figures  give 
fearful  evidence  of  their  misery. 

Frequent  stoppages  for  wood  bring  to  our 
steamer,  always  begging  for  food,  these  miserable 
starving  creatures,  who  are  assembled  in  mass 
upon  the  great  high  ant-hills,  whose  cone-like 
shape  deceives  one  often  into  belief  that  they  are 
villages.  These  ant-hills,  from  ten  to  twelve  feet 
high,  dotted  here  and  there  in  great  numbers  over 
the  marshy  plain,  alone  break  the  oppressive  de- 
l^ression  of  these  lowlands.  From  these  points 
the  negro,  leaning  upon  his  spear,  with  his  leg 
uplifted  and  forming  an  angle,  his  foot  resting 
upon  the  knee  of  the  left  leg,  supporting  thus,  in 
not  ungraceful  pose,  his  body,  bent  forward  in 
eager  and  curious  gaze  at  the  passing  steamer. 

April  10th. — We  pass  the  spot  called  "  Wossis  " 
(priest),  where  once  a  brave  little  band  of  Austrian 
priests  settled  in  these  fetid  marshes,  devoted 
victims  to  a  strange  infatuation.  The  place  now, 
alone  is  marked  by  some  banana-trees  planted  by 
them,  the  sole  surviving  memorial  of  their  faith 
and  sacrifice. 

April  11th. — We  arrive  at  "  Bor,"  an  ivory 
establishment,  where  we  receive  the  doubtful 
honours  of  a  Falstaffian  band  of  "  Dongolowee," 
belonging    to    the    independent    corps   of  ivory 


AEEIVAL   AT   GONDOKORO.  31 

hunters  and  merchants  at  Khartoum.  Farther  on 
we  stop  for  wood,  procuring  ebony  for  fuel ;  here 
I  got  a  chance  shot  at  a  troop  of  giraffes,  but  with- 
out effect  other  than  to  send  them  flying  through 
the  brush. 

April  \Sth. — Stopped  for  wood  near  a  deserted 
negro  village  in  decay ;  the  ground  is  covered 
with  skulls  and  human  bones;  the  huts  are  perched 
upon  ebony  posts,  which  we  secure  for  fuel. 

April  Ibth. — The  river  is  becoming  less  deep  and 
navigation  more  difficult ;  at  intervals  we  stick  on 
a  muddy  shoal.  Immense  number  of  hippopotami 
and  crocodiles,  our  constant  companions  en  route, 
seem  here  with  angry  roars  to  oppose  our  passage. 

Ajjril  IQtJi. — We  can  see  in  the  distance  the 
mountains  near  Gondokoro,  "  Lado,  Belignan,  and 
Regaf,"  and  the  dreary  waste  of  pestiferous  marsh 
of  this  gloomy  river  Styx  gives  place  to  "  terra 
firma,"  when  we  had  almost  begun  to  think  that 
Central  -Africa  must  lose  itself  in  the  black  stink- 
ing mud,  that  has  been  our  home  for  the  last 
twenty-six  days. 

April  17 th. — We  arrived  at  Gondokoro,  where  we 
were  received  with  customary  honours  by  the 
commandant  of  the  garrison.  Colonel  Raouf-Bej 
(now  Paclia). 


CHAPTER  V. 

Goudokoro — The  "  Canissa  " — Graves  of  Mr.  Higglnbotham 
and  M.  Auguste  Linant — Destructive  powers  of  the 
White  Ants — Loron,  the  great  Sheik  of  the  Bavi — His 
Wife  and  Daughters — The  Governor  General  returns  to 
Khartoum — Despondency — The  connexion  of  the  Lakes 
Victoria  and  Albert,  the  Problem — Ba  Beker — Death  of 
Livingstone — Determine  on  the  Journey — My  Companions 
— My  Staff— My  Horse  "  Ugunda  " — Heavy  Rains. 

GoNDOKORO,  on  the  right  bank  of  the  river,  on  a 
blufF-hke  elevation  ten  feet  above  the  level  of  the 
stream,  is  a  military  encampment,  composed  of 
straw  huts  enclosed  in  a  high  palisade  of  straw ; 
a  little  stream  running  through  marshy,  and 
at  times  flooded  land,  bounds  the  north  side  of 
the  encampment.  The  brick  "  canissa  "  (church) 
had  been  long  since  pulled  down  by  the  "  Baris," 
and  had  served,  mixed  with  grease,  to  besmear 
their  bodies  with  the  favourite  red  colour  they 
affect.  The  magazine  of  heavy  tin,  filled  with 
trumpery  for  the  savages,  is  a  relic  of  the  admi- 
nistration of  Sir  Samuel  Baker.  Not  far  away,  a 
rude  memorial  erected  here  marks  the  grave  of  one 
of  Sir  Samuel  Baker's   most  energetic  aids,  Mr. 


D 


DEATH   OP   M.   AUGUSTE   LINANT.  33 

Higginbotham.  Alas  !  tliat  on  my  return  from 
Lake  Victoria  I  should  find  tlie  deserted  spot 
invaded,  to  give  place  to  my  friend,  M.  Augusta 
Linant,  the  son  of  M.  Linant  de  Bellefonds,  of 
Cairo.  Not  without  a  spasm  of  pain  I  looked  at 
the  broken  turf  that  marked  his  resting-place ;  and 
memory  went  back  to  that  morning,  mentioned  at 
the  opening  of  this  book,  when  he  and  a  host  of 
friends  bade  me  adieu  in  Cairo.  Poor  Linant, 
then  insisting  that  I  should  cause  him  to  be 
appointed  to  the  Expedition,  my  interference  had 
been  too  successful;  for  he  had  arrived  and 
died  ere  my  return.  Others  too  lay  close  by, 
victims  alike  to  a  deadly  fever  prevalent  here,  since 
Gondokoro  had  proved  almost  a  plague  spot,  in 
this  respect  alone. 

The  famous  white  ants  of  which  so  much  has 
been  written,  at  Gondokoro,  as  at  every  point 
from  the  Saubat  south  to  the  Equator,  employ 
their  energetic  qualities  to  such  an  extent  as  to 
destroy  almost  everything,  save  metals,  if  left  for 
twenty-four  or  forty-eight  hours  on  the  earth. 
Warned  of  this,  all  my  clothing  and  baggage 
were  carefully  hoisted  from  contact  with  the 
ground.  Others,  more  unfortunate  or  more  in- 
credulous, did  not  take  the  same  precaution ;  and 
consequently  had  their  clothing,  and  even  sword- 
belts,  almost  entirely  destroyed  by  this  veritable 
plague.  They  throw  up  large  red  mounds,  that 
rise  solitary  and  alone,  the  only  distinctive  marks 


34  CENTRAL   AFRICA. 

that  break  the  monotony  of  the  plains  and  marshes, 
and  from  whose  tops,  eight  to  ten  feet  high,  the 
naked  savage  may  be  seen  with  foot  resting  upon 
the  knee  of  the  leg  that  supports  him  ;  the  right 
hand  clasping  the  lance  crosswise,  as  a  means  of 
defence  or  offence — of  livelihood,  if  he  be  an  in- 
habitant of  the  river  banks ;  for  the  lance  alone 
serves  him  as  a  means  of  procuring  fish,  by  the 
uncertain  process  of  spearing  them. 

As  I  have  said  before,  we  have  left  the  gulf  of 
marsh  and  pestiferous  land  that  separates  Gondo- 
koro  from  the  mouth  of  the  Saubat.  Gondokoro 
looks  out  upon  a  country  not  unpicturesque ;  the 
mountains  in  the  distance;  the  grass-covered 
land  dotted  here  and  there  by  tall  stately  trees ; 
flocks  of  sheep,  goats,  and  cows :  and  nicely 
constructed  villages,  constitute  indeed  a  plea- 
sant change  from  the  country  we  have  recently 
passed  over.  Loron,  the  great  Sheik  of  the 
Bari,  comes  to  make  our  acquaintance,  and 
introduces  his  numerous  wives.  Loron,  a  great, 
tall,  magnificently  built  man,  in  a  state  of  "  puris 
naturalibus  " — a  national  distinction  of  the  Bari — 
takes  his  seat  upon  the  little  stool  in  ebony 
carried  by  all  Baris  habitually,  so  that  the  legs 
embrace  the  left  shoulder  near  the  head.  His 
huge  limbs  are  in  such  great  contrast  to  the 
pigmy  article  as  to  obscure  from  sight  the  stool ; 
whilst  at  the  same  time,  to  excite  mirth  at  the 
seeming  painful    and   ridiculous   position  of  the 


LORON,  SHEIK  OF  THE  BAEI.         35 

great  cliief,  his  wife  and  daughters — from  whom, 
in  accordance  with  the  tribal  custom,  all  capillary 
attractions  had  been  removed  by  native  depilla- 
tories,  both  as  to  their  heads  and  bodies — were 
covered  with  a  coating  of  grease  and  oxide  of 
iron.  They  were  far  more  modest  than  Loron, 
and  wore  the  native  girdle,  consisting  of  strips  of 
leather  finely  cut  hanging  down  in  front ;  whilst 
in  the  rear  "  the  correct  thing  "  is  to  have  a  long 
bushy  tail  falling  nearly  to  the  ankles.  This  is 
to  be  fashionably  dressed  "  a  la  Bari." 

The  details  of  inspection,  consequent  upon 
the  arrival  of  the  Governor  General,  have  no 
place  here.  Quickly  despatched,  the  Governor 
General  determined  to  return  to  Khartoum,  and 
there  hasten  forward  Abou  Saoud,  en  route  from 
Cairo  with  the  rear-guard;  and  acting  in  con- 
cert with  him,  return  to  Gondokoro. 

On  the  20th  of  April,  then.  Colonel  Gordon 
returned  to  Khartoum.  The  brilliant  prospect  of 
aiding  in  the  work  of  the  regeneration  of  Africa, — 

"  To  scatter  plenty  o'er  a  smiling  land, 
And  read  your  history  in  a  nation's  eyes," 

had  received,  through  the  long  stretch  of  dreary 
deadly  marsh  that  interposes  from  Khartoum,  a 
very  sensible  shock.  The  disheartened  tone  of 
officers  and  men,  whose  sickly  emaciated  appear- 
ance, too  truly  corroborated  their  long  drawn 
"  griefs,"  caused  me,  for  a  moment,  to  regret  my 


36  CENTRAL   AFRICA. 

voluntary  exile  from  a  pleasant  service  in  Cairo; 
but  a  sentiment  of  duty  ratlier  than  enthusiasm 
rose  liigh  above    the   apparent   obstacles  to  my 
purpose.     Imbued  with  that  sentiment  of  Long- 
fellow's,— 

"  In  the  world's  great  field  of  battle, 
In  the  bivouac  of  life, 
Be  not  like  dumb  driven  cattle, 
Be  a  hero  in  the  strife," 

the  prospective  journey  to  the  Lake  "Victoria 
Nyanza,  had  been  suggested  to  me  by  the  im- 
patient desire  of  the  world  to  know  something  of 
that  mysterious  region,  the  Source  of  the  Nile.  I 
had  in  my  mind's  eye  the  connecting  of  the  two 
lakes — Victoria  and  Albert — till  now  a  problem  : 
the  unfinished  work  of  Captain  Speke.  Another 
incentive  to  this  journey  to  the  Lake  Victoria, 
was  to  visit  and  confer  with  that  great  African 
king,  of  whom  only  vague  accounts  had  been  given 
by  Speke,  whose  visit  to  Ugunda  resulted  in  the 
discovery  of  the  Lake  Victoria  Nyanza,  but  who 
had  still  left  the  question  one  of  mystery  and 
doubt. 

The  presence  at  Gondokoro  of  a  wily  black, 
named  Ba  Beker,  who  had  made  his  way  through 
Unyoro,  coming  from  M'Tse,  King  of  Ugunda,  and 
bearing  letters  to  Sir  Samuel  Baker  from  Lieu- 
tenant Cameron,  announcing  the  death  of  Living- 
stone at  Ujiji,  seemed  a  propitious  circumstance, 
though  the  non-arrival  of  baggage  and  provisions. 


DEATH   OF   LIVINGSTONE.  37 

and  an  utter  want  of  every  necessary,  conspired 
to  render  the  attempt  nothing  short  of  folly. 
The  Governor  General,  ere  his  departure,  had  been 
informed  of  my  wish  and  opposed  no  objection 
thereto,  although  from  letters  addressed  to  me  from 
Khartoum  he  had  deemed  it  utterly  impracticable, 
and  presumed  me  still  at  Gondokoro.  Invested, 
however,  with  the  necessary  authority,  I  made  a 
demand  upon  Raouf  Pacha,  the  Colonel  command- 
ing post,  but  only  two  soldiers  in  the  weakened 
condition  of  the  garrison  could  be  detailed  to 
my  service.  They  came  from  the  "  Forty 
Thieves "  of  Sir  Samuel  Baker,  or  as  they 
were  known,  the  "  Soudanieh  Corps " — Said 
Bagarrah,  and  Abd-el-Rahman — destined  to  be 
my  faithful  companions  and  comrades  in  arms 
in  all  the  eventful  scenes  of  misery  and  hardship 
that  marked  our  joint  adventures.  My  two 
unfaithful  and  useless  servants,  and  a  miserable 
wretch  in  exile,  Ibrahim  Effendi,  in  the  capacity  of 
dragoman,  composed  my  staff;  the  latter  unfortu- 
nately only  adding  to  the  obstacles  interposed  by 
savages  and  by  the  elements.  The  rainy  season 
had  commenced,  and  the  hastily  collected  stores 
of  sugar  and  coflfee  that  could  only  last  me  in  the 
first  steps  of  my  voyage,  received  a  fearful  deluge 
of  rain  the  night  preceding  my  departure,  the  23rd 
of  April.  My  horse  and  Sais  Suliman  should  not 
be  forgotten  here,  both  have  a  place  in  my  affec- 
tions to-day  from  their  faithful  service  and  com- 


38  CENTRAL   AFRICA. 

panionsliip.  The  former  kept  me  company  in  tlie 
long  vigils  of  stormy  nights  that  marked  my  ab- 
sence and  secured  for  me  doubtless,  on  my  entree 
as  a  Centaur  at  the  Palais  of  M'Tse,  in  Ugunda, 
the  honours  of  human  sacrifice,  accorded  only  to 
the  equals  of  African  kings  !  Retiring  to  my  tent 
I  prepared  several  hasty  notes  of  adieu,  rendered 
almost  indecipherable  by  the  howling  rain  that 
invaded  and  deluged  my  retreat,  and  thus  ren- 
dered sleep  impossible.  On  the  morrow,  at  an 
early  hour,  I  determined  to  put  myself  en  route, 
and  to  defy  the  almost  insuperable  obstacles  that 
presented  themselves  at  the  commencement  of  my 
enterprise,  and  now — 

"  Here  is  one  fytte  of  Harold's  pilgrimage: 
Ye  who  of  him  may  further  seek  to  know, 
Shall  find  some  tidings  in  a  future  page, 
If  he  that  rhymeth  now  may  scribble  moe." 


CHAPTER  VI. 

Violent  Storms  and  Rains— Affair  at  Mrooli— M'Tse,  king  of 
Ugunda  — Connexion  of  the  Lakes  Victoria  Nyanza  and 
Albert— Desire  to  solve  the  Problem — Preparations  to 
depart  —  My  Escort — Ba  Beker  —  Description  of  my 
"  personnel  "—Death  of  my  Horse— The  Dongolowee— 
.  Bid  Eaouf  Bey  a  last  adieu— Cross  the  "  Hor-el-Ramle  "— 
"Gebel-el-Kelb"— Hadid,  the  Iron  Man  of  Fatiko— The 
Mogi  Country— Massacre— Prepare  for  an  Attack  from 
the  Mogi  Tribe — Their  mass  in  front  attacked  and  dis- 
persed—  The  Lahore — The  Bahr-el-Asua —  Miani's 
Tree— Utter  break-down    of  Kellerman — Porters  dying 

of  fatigue    are    left   unbtiried — Address  of  Gimmoro 

Arrival   at    Fatiko — Received  with  enthusiasm  by    the 
Garrison. 

The  morning  of  the  24tli  of  April  dawned  in 
thunder,  lightning,  and  rain ;  the  unabated  storm 
of  the  night  previous  had  seemed  to  gather  new 
violence,  as  if  with  its  chilling  influence  to  act  in 
concert  with  the  ofiicers  of  the  post,  whose 
sombre  representations  cf  the  diflBculties  of  the 
route  southward  alone  might  have  deterred  me 
from  the  attempt,  certainly  at  this  season  of 
rains,  whose  duration  would  be  six  months,  and 


40  CENTEAL  AFRICA. 

when  the  wild  jungle-grass  springing  np  to  an 
enormous  height,  formed  at  times  an  almost  im- 
passable barrier.  This  was  not  all,  for  after 
quitting  the  last  military  post  at  Foueira,  I  should 
be  wholly  dependent  upon  the  country  for  food ; 
in  fact,  alone  with  two  soldiers  to  run  the  gauntlet 
of  African  diplomacy,  and  dangers  that  had 
caused  Speke,  with  fifty  soldiers,  to  leave  uncom- 
pleted the  navigation  of  the  Nile,  between  the 
Lake  Victoria  and  the  Lake  Albert;  and  forced 
Sir  Samuel  Baker,  just  entering  Unyoro,  at 
Masindi,  with  a  large  body  of  soldiers,  and  every 
luxury  of  camp  and  tent  life,  to  retreat  from  the 
country,  many  of  his  soldiers  killed,  and  his 
immense  stores  destroyed  by  Keba  Rega;  thus 
rendering  nominal  only  his  "  annexation "  of 
this  country,  and  leaving  a  passage  through  it 
a  matter  of  peril,  as  will  be  shown  hereafter, 
in  my  recital  of  the  affair  at  Mrooli,  as  well 
as  in  the  subsequent  massacre  of  the  troops 
of  M'Tse;  and  later  still,  of  thirty-six  out  of  the 
valorous  "  Forty  Thieves  "  of  Baker,  who  accom- 
panied my  unfortunate  friend  M.  Linant,  then 
returning  from  Ugunda. 

I  have  said  elsewhere,  in  an  analysis  of  this  ex- 
pedition, made  before  the  French  Geographical 
Society,  at  their  request,  that  "  Par  suite  de  cir- 
constances,  dont  le  detail  ne  serait  pas  ici  a  sa 
place,  je  dus  me  mettre  en  route  avant  I'arrivee 
de   mes   bagages.     C'etait    une   imprudence   qui 


•  DEPART  FOE  THE   LAKES.  41 

aurait  pu  nous  couter  clier  a  moi-meme  et  a  mes 
compagnons,  mais  elle  me  fut  imposee  par  le  sen- 
timent du  devoir."  *  It  is  this  that  may  excuse 
me  for  an  act  of  premeditated  folly  and  rash- 
ness. 

That  mysterious  region,  the  Lake  Victoria 
Nyanza,  the  source  of  the  Nile,  was  the  Eldorado 
of  Central  African  explorers,  to  unlock  whose 
difficult  and  hidden  secrets,  and  explore  the 
uncertain  and  unknown  link  between  the  two 
lakes,  Victoria  and  Albert,  was  still  in  the  geo- 
graphical world  a  consummation  devoutly  to  be 
wished  for. 

Alone  at  Gondokoro  I  sought  the  key  to  un- 
lock the  forbidden  door,  and  determined  to  brave 
all  danger,  "  to  set  my  life  upon  the  cast,  and  stand 
the  hazard  of  the  die."  I  then  proceeded  to  in- 
spect the  poor  stores  I  had  collected  from  the 
magazine,  and  which  the  night  before  had  been 
sewed  tightly  in  new  cow-skins  for  protection 
against  the  weather.  They  consisted  of  several 
pounds  of  sugar  and  coffee,  and  a  few  pounds  of 
bread,  the  remnant  of  a  few  rations  for  the  route 

*  "By  a  concourse  of  circumstances,  the  particulars  of 
which  I  need  not  here  detail,  I  was  compelled  to  start  before 
the  arrival  of  my  baggage  and  supplies.  This  was  an  act  of 
folly  that  might  have  cost  dear  both  to  myself  and  to  my 
companions,  but  it  was  dictated  to  me  by  a  sentiment  of 
duty." 


42  CENTEAL   AFRICA. 

purcliased  at  Khartoum,  sufficient  only  for  a  few 
days.  My  uniform  and  a  change  of  clothing  com- 
prised my  personal  store;  the  rest  composed  of 
"  Suc-Suc,"  a  Soudanieh  nomenclature,  under 
which  beads,  red  cloth,  tarbouches,  and  other 
trumpery  articles  (packed  in  tin  cases  left  by 
Baker),  to  strike  the  fancy  of  Africans,  are  desig- 
nated. These  were  intended  as  "  salaam-alak " 
(gifts)  for  King  M'Tse.  As  porters  of  these 
effects  there  were  then  at  Gondokoro  300  Fati- 
kites  (negro  porters)  of  Fatiko,  who  had  come 
from  the  Fatiko  military  post  with  a  column  bring- 
ing ivory,  and  the  supernumeraries  carrying  the 
effects  of  officers  and  soldiers,  accompanying  them 
as  an  escort,  numbering  sixty  men,  in  command  of 
a  lieutenant ;  the  sole  means  of  transport  in  these 
countries  being  the  negro,  paid  by  "  Suc-suc,"  or 
a  cow,  if  the  burden  carried  be  of  much  value.  It 
may  be  remarked  here  that  nowhere  in  Africa, 
though  possessing  the  elephant,  giraffe,  and  buf- 
falo, has  the  negro  ever  attempted  to  make  use 
of  them  as  beasts  of  burden.  As  a  fact  how- 
ever, and  only  in  justice  to  him,  the  need 
thereof  is  scarcely  understood;  since  labour  of 
any  kind  is  the  exception  not  the  rule  in  African 
wilds. 

In  addition  to  the  troops  there  were  eighty 
irregulars,  Dongolowee  ivory  hunters  returning  to 
their  station   at  Faloro,  under  the  command  of 


BA   BEKEK.  43 

Suleiman,  the  ex-Wekil  of  Abou-Saoud,  now  en- 
rolled in  the  government  service  in  the  ivory 
interest,  at  a  salary  that  rendered  him  of  great 
importance;  not  alone  this,  he  was  going  with 
plenipotentiary  powers  to  the  court  of  Keba  Rega 
as  ambassador !  ^  They  would  accompany  me  as 
far  as  "Miani's  Tree,"  whence,  westward  to  the 
Nile,  they  would  go  to  Faloro,  where  large 
quantities  of  ivory  were  already  stored.  My 
advance  southward  then,  within  the  lines  of  our 
military  posts  extending  to  Foueira,  near  Ka- 
ruma  Falls,  was  rendered  comparatively  secure. 
Last,  though  not  least,  in  this  escort  was  the 
high  functionary,  Ba  Beker,  heretofore  mentioned, 
a  black  diplomat  from  the  court  of  M'Tse, 
and  privy  counsellor  to  this  potentate.  He  had 
been  entrusted  by  M'Tse  with  letters,  that  "  his 
people  had  received  at  Ujiji  from  a  white  man  " 
(frequent  communication  is  had  between  Ujiji 
and  TJgunda),  supposed  to  be  Lieutenant  Cameron, 
addressed  to  the  Governor  General  at  Gondokoro. 
Ba  Beker  had  received  orders  such  as  the  king  is 
accustomed  to  give  in  all  cases  :  "  Fail  to  execute 
your  mission,  and  your  head  pays  the  forfeit." 
By  stealthy  marches  by  night,  and  secreted  in 
marsh    and   banana   grove  by  day,  Unyoro  had 

^  This  fact  is  mentioned  here  in  connexion  with  the  affair  at 
Mrooli,  the  17th  of  August,  1874.  Suleiman  was  then  at 
Masiudi,  only  three  days  away  to  the  westwai'd. 


44  CENTEAL   AFKICA. 

been  passed,  and  the  watcliful,  wary  Keba  Rega 
successfully  eluded,  and  Ba  Beker  with  a  few 
followers  had  reached  the  government  post  at 
Foueira,  whence  with  the  ivory  escort  he  had 
made  his  way  to  Gondokoro.  Nervous  as  to  his 
return  he  gladly  welcomed  the  announcement  of 
my  visit  to  Ugunda.  I  saw  that  though  boast- 
ful of  making  his  way  through  Unyoro,  that 
"  annexed  country  of  Sir  Samuel  Baker  " — he  felt 
very  much  like  the  school-boy  fresh  from  the  in- 
fluence of  the  nursery,  whose  traditional  dread 
of  passing  lonely  churchyards  at  late,  hours,  has 
been  appreciated  by  all  whose  youth  may  have 
been  spent  in  villages. 

Ba  Beker,  though  black  as  ebony,  was  a  cross 
between  the  negro  and  the  Malay.  Very  short  in 
stature,  his  little  black  face  was  illumed  by  two 
little  fiery  red  eyes,  that  burned  like  coals  when 
excited  by  anger  or  cruelty ;  but  habitually  were 
downcast,  or  half  closed  in  modest  mildness  and 
humility,  that  Uriah  Heap  might  not  have  sur- 
passed. When  addressing  me  his  body  was  bent 
low,  his  hands  upon  his  stomach :  replying  to 
every  suggestion  of  mine  with  the  expression  that 
became  stereotyped,  "  Rasak  tiib  ye  Bey  !  " 
"  Your  head  is  clear,  0  Bey ! "  This  fellow  in- 
spired me  with  a  feeling  of  disgust  and  sus- 
picion, warranted  by  succeediug  events ;  as 
he  became  jealous  of  my  influence  with  M'Tse, 
and    came    near,    by    conspiracy    and   intrigue, 


DESCRIPTION   OP   MY    "  PERSONNEL."  45 

in  thwarting  my  plans,  and  often  jeopardizing 
my  life. 

So  much  for  the  escort  that  were  to  accompany 
me  the  first  steps  of  the  route.  I  turn  now  to  my 
followers,  who  were  to  brave  with  me  the  dangers 
of  the  route  to  the  lake. 

Said  Bagarrah  and  Abd-el-Eahman  were  two 
black  soldiers,  armed  with  Snyders,  selected  from 
the  Soudanieh  Corps  to  accompany  me  by  Raouf 
Bey  (now  Pacha),  the  commander  of  the  post  at 
Gondokoro.  The  first  was  a  native  of  the 
country  near  Fashoda,  of  the  Bagarrah  tribe; 
the  latter,  a  native  of  Darfour.  Devoted  and 
courageous,  these  two  native  soldiers  were  my 
constant  companions  in  all  the  hardships  and 
dangers  that  awaited  me,  and  with  pleasure  I  shall 
do  them  justice  in  my  recital  of  the  perils  we 
shared  together.  Suleiman,  my  Sais  (Arab  groom), 
was  a  bold  and  daring  fellow,  but  an  old  wound 
obliged  me  to  leave  him  at  Foueira,  as  he  was  un- 
able to  proceed. 

Adam,  a  Berberian,  my  cook,  was  nearly  always 
sick  and  perfectly  worthless.  Ibrahim  Effendi, 
Arab  dragoman,  a  convict,  had  been  exiled  to  the 
Soudan  as  punishment  for  misconduct,  and  be- 
haved so  badly  that  I  soon  left  him  in  arrest  at 
the  station  of  Foueira. 

"W.  F.  G.  Kellerman,  Alsacian  and  Prussian,  had 
insisted  upon  accompanying  me,  notwithstanding 
my  objections.     He  had  enrolled  himself  as  valet 


46  CENTEAL   AFRICA. 

at  Khartoum;  but,  after  a  few  days'  march, 
declared  himself  "  a  geutleman,"  and  refused  abso- 
lutely to  aid  me  in  any  way  whatever.  Unable 
to  send  him  back,  this  fwmeant  proved  a  source  of 
great  care  and  annoyance  throughout  the  expedi- 
tion. He  went  to  Ugunda  with  me,  and  waded 
through  bog  and  slime  with  clothes  on,  insuring 
himself  thereby  an  extra  portion  of  fever  that 
myself  and  others  evaded  by  divesting  ourselves 
of  dress,  removing  the  sometimes  putrid  paste 
in  some  friendly  pool  of  water,  rather  than  sub- 
mit to  being  encased  in  the  poisonous  matter, 
that  rendered  Kellerman's  presence  at  times 
intolerable. 

With  this  outline  of  circumstances  and  per- 
sonnel on  the  morning  of  my  departure  I  have 
only  to  join  the  column  that  is  waiting  for  me 
beyond  the  sentries.  The  Governor  General  had 
turned  over  to  me  the  only  horse  at  Gondokoro ; 
he  had  come  with  us  from  Berber,  where  he 
had  been  purchased ;  facts  that  are  mentioned  in 
grateful  memory  of  the  service  that  he  rendered 
me ;  whether  borne  by  the  faithful  animal,  or  by  his 
side,  the  bridle  on  arm,  along  the  long  difficult 
path;  the  "centaur"  at  M'Tse;  our  silent  sym- 
pathetic communion  in  the  lonely  vigils  of  the 
night,  as  he  lay  with  his  head  at  my  feet — all  these 
endear  to  me  beyond  the  power  of  belief  the  me- 
mory of  "  Ugunda."  He  died  at  Gondokoro  three 
days  after  my  return,  and  the  news  of  his  death 


THE    DONGOLOWEE.  47 

caused  me  almost  as  great  pain  as  would  that  of 
a  human  being. 

Mounted,  I  bade  adieu  to  officers  and  men  as  I 
rode  along  the  opened  ranks  of  infantry,  and 
responded  to  the  honours  that  were  rendered  me. 
The  column  was  put  in  motion,  and  Kaouf  Bey 
accompanied  me  for  several  hours  of  the  march. 
This  officer  had  for  five  years  commanded  at 
Gondokoro,  and  through  the  influence  exerted  by 
him,  the  treacherous  and  cowardly  "  Bari  "  had  at 
length  accepted,  as  a  fact,  the  definitive  occupation 
of  the  country  by  the  Government  troops,  against 
whom  these  people,  and  in  fact  every  other  tribe, 
had  been  excited  by  the  Dongolowee  faction.  So 
true  was  this,  that  open  hostility  reigned  between 
the  Soudanieh  Corps  and  the  Dongolowee,  not 
alone  here,  but  at  every  Government  Station ;  the 
latter  regarding  the  former  as  invading  precincts 
that  belonged  to  them  as  ivory  hunters ;  and  the 
former,  boastful  and  proud  of  their  reputation  as 
soldiers,  treated  these  men  as  "  Hotariah,"  irre- 
gulars or  "  Basha  Bouzouks,"  become  now  a  word 
of  reproach.  These  Dongolowee  were  recruited 
at  Khartoum  by  the  ivory  houses  of  Agad  and  Co., 
and  Rataz,  chief  agent  of  the  former  being  Abou 
Saoud,  having  as  his  lieutenant  Suleiman,  al- 
ready mentioned,  and  "  Wat-el-Mek,"  otherwise 
known  as  "Mehemet-el-Tar."  The  dissolution 
and  withdrawal  of  these  houses  from  the  trade  left 

these  men  still  at  the  "  Zeri has  "  (stations).     They 

E 


48  CENTRAL   AFRICA. 

had  been  compensated  for  their  services  at  the 
rate  of  five  francs  per  month,  and  "  loot,"  that  is 
to  say,  in  the  razzias  that  were  made  in  uniting 
themselves  with  some  native  tribes,  and  making 
the  attack  conjointly,  with  a  division  of  spoils, 
"women  and  ivory."  Eminently  fitted  for  the 
hard  and  arduous  service  of  this  nomad  life,  the 
Dongolowee,  the  Bedouin  of  Upper  Nubia,  with- 
out traditions  and  without  a  country,  save  the 
jungle  of  Africa,  could  not  but  look  with  displea- 
sure upon  his  dispossession,  and  the  enforcement 
of  order  and  justice,  where  before  he  had  been 
"  monarch  of  all  he  surveyed."  The  removal  of 
the  leading  ambitious  spirits  among  them,  such 
as  Abou  Saoud,  Wat-el-Mek,  and  Suleiman, 
would  have  left  them  without  the  inspiration  for 
evil,  and  an  element  that  is  almost  a  necessity 
in  the  occupation  of  that  country.  Certainly 
in  the  great  trade  in  its  ivory  they  could  have  been 
made  an  instrument  of  progress  and  civilization ; 
for,  with  all  their  faults,  these  rude  children  of 
the  jungle  have  many  generous  qualities,  and  are 
exceedingly  tractable.  This  digression  has  been 
made  to  endeavour  to  make  clear  the  signification 
of  names  and  persons,  that  have  been  called  to 
play  their  part  in  Central  Africa ;  as  well  as  to 
correct  impressions  that  have  been  sought  to  be 
made  to  the  prejudice  of  the  Government  troops. 
The  presence  of  these  men  with  my  command 
besides  induced  the  explanation. 


I    BID    RAOUF    BET   A    LAST   ADIEU.  49 

Let  US  return  now  to  tlie  column  on  the  march. 
The  road  runs  over  an  undulating  ground,  dotted 
here  and  there  by  wide-spreading, trees,  whilst  in 
the  distance,  almost  shut  out  by  the  now  thick 
mist  that  has  succeeded  the  rain,  are  seen  the 
mountains  Regaf  and  Belignan,  whose  redoubt- 
able "  Sheik"  defied  the  authority  of  the  former 
Governor  General,  and  is  no  less  now  a  terror  to 
the  surrounding  tribes,  by  his  frequent  incursions 
and  "  cattle-lifting."  A  continued  internecine  war 
of  tribes  exists  in  Central  Africa.  The  stronger 
takes  from  the  weaker  cattle  and  slaves. 
"Might  makes  Right"  is  essentially  a  savage 
instinct.  Arrived  at  a  muddy  and  now  swollen 
stream  I  dismounted  and  threw  off  my  nether 
garments,  and  at  the  head  of  the  column,  "  en 
chemise,"  remounted.  I  waved  E-aouf  Bey  a 
last  adieu,  my  antique  costume  causing  this 
officer  a  hearty  laugh  as  he  wished  me  a  safe 
return.  All  were  passed  over  in  safety,  and 
resuming  the  march  we  bivouacked  at  four  p.m., 
beset  by  a  violent  storm  of  rain  and  sleet,  that 
uprooted  my  tent  from  the  spongy  earth,  and  it 
was  only  kept  in  place  by  the  combined  efforts  of 
myself  and  two  soldiers.  Only  one  tent,  and  this 
was  in  rags,  could  be  procured;  for  it  will  be 
remembered  that  these  stores  were  taken  from 
the  magazine  left  by  Sir  Samuel  Baker  ;  the  camp 
equipage,  provisions,  and  medicine,  intended  for 
his  successor,  were  still  en  route,  and  doubtless 


50  CENTRAL   AFRICA. 

had  not  yet  reached  Khartoum.  As  an  opening 
scene  in  a  drama  of  fifty-eight  days  of  rain, 
misery,  and  privation,  yet  to  be  encountered  as  we 
advanced,  it  fell  cold  and  cheerless  upon  the  poor 
actors.  I  confess  to  a  moment  of  utter  despon- 
dency, almost  fear  of  the  terrible  undertaking 
before  me ;  and  the  entreaties  of  the  officers  to 
desist  came  painfully  to  my  mind.  The  die  was 
cast,  for  I  felt — in  the  homely  words  of  Lincoln — 
that  it  was  now  "too  late  to  swop  horses;"  and 
to  return  would  subject  me  to  criticism,  however 
unjust. 

April  25th. — After  a  night  of  desperate  struggle 
against  the  storm,  that  seemed  determined  to 
deprive  us  of  shelter,  the  reveil  was  beaten.  At 
six  o'clock  the  officers  came  to  drink  coffee  with 
me ;  and  half  an  hour  afterwards  the  column  was 
in  motion. 

The  route  runs  through  deserted  villages  of  the 
Bari.  Here  and  there  we  cross  "Hors"  (streams) 
that  cut  in  every  direction  the  now-flooded  low- 
lands. The  country  is  rolling,  and  assumes  as 
we  proceed  a  park-like  appearance.  Tamarind 
and  ebony -trees  grow  on  every  side,  and  the  land 
has  changed  from  the  dark  pasty  soil  to  a  light 
gravelly  character.  We  cro^  the  "  Hor-el- 
Ramle"  (Stream  of  sand),  whose  quicksands  terrify 
my  horse  "Ugunda,"  as  he  sinks  in  its  treacherous 
bed.  The  cortege  passes  over,  however,  without 
accident ;  and  resuming  the  route,  after  a  long  and 


THE    "  TIOK-EL-EAMLE."  51 

fatiguing  marcli  we  encamp  in  a  deserted  village 
of  straw  huts.  These  huts  are  constructed  of 
"  Esch  "  (jungle-grass),  forming  a  thatched  roof 
that  descends  from  a  conical  shape ;  perched 
upon  stakes  of  wood  in  a  circular  form,  and 
plastered  with  earth,  thus  forming  the  sides.  The 
corn-bins  are  raised  from  the  earth  on  four  stakes, 
to  protect  against  the  ravages  of  the  white  ant 
that  here,  as  heretofore  mentioned,  is  the  redoubted 
pest  of  Central  Africa.  The  bin  itself  is  of  inge- 
niously plaited  strips  of  fine  wood,  and  has  the 
appearance  of  an  immense  basket.  The  Bari 
villages  are  constructed  in  circular  form,  protected 
by  a  hedge  of  cactus  or  of  wood,  to  serve  as 
shelter  or  defence  .against  attack.  Ere  the  rain 
fell  I  took  a  refreshing  bath  in  the  "  Hor-el- 
Ramle,"  and  wearied  with  fatigue  sought  my  tent 
to  sleep. 

"Wliilst  the  reveil  was  being  beaten  we  drank  a 
hurried  cup  of  coffee,  and  prepared  for  the  march ; 
and  quitting  the  village  at  half -past  six  a.m., 
we  crossed  again  the  very  serpentine  "  Hor- 
el-Ramle,"  that  eventually  makes  its  way  to 
the  "  Bahr-el-Abiad,"  nearly  opposite  "  Gebel- 
el-Regaf."  A  march  of  six  hours  brings  us  to 
"  Jebel-el-Kelb  '\  (Dog  Mountain),  at  whose  base 
we  encamp,  menaced  by  a  fearful  storm  that  soon 
beats  down  relentlessly.  The  rainy  season  has 
commenced,  and  such  rain  !  My  poor  tent  is  a 
mere  sieve,  and  the  only  thing  that  protects  me. 


52  CENTEAL   AFRICA. 

thougli  but  slightly  from  its  effects,  is  a  mackintosli 
that  the  kindly  Dr.  Sala,  the  post  doctor,  has 
loaned  me, 

Ap7'il  27th. — With  military  precision,  doubtless 
induced  by  the  discomforts  of  the  night,  we  are 
en  route  at  half -past  six  a.m.  The  severe  illness 
of  the  officer  commanding  the  troops  compelled 
me  to  bivouac  at  mid-day.  With  the  exception  of 
a  bottle  of  laudanum  and  a  bottle  of  chlorodyne,  I 
am  totally  unprovided  with  medicines;  for  the 
reason  that  there  were  none  at  Gondokoro.  From 
this  small  store,  however,  I  administered  him  a 
potion,  and  quickly  recovering,  T  found  that  I 
had  established  a  reputation  as  "Hakim"  (doctor), 
that  caused  me  no  little  annoyjince  in  the  future, 
not  alone  because  I  had  nothing  with  which  to 
i^elieve  the  suffering  patients,  but  because  they 
persisted  in  believing  that  I  was  a  "medicine  man," 
and  ascribed  to  me  extraordinary  powers  in .  the 
healing  art. 

April  28th. — Awake  this  morning  at  five  o'clock 
a  victim  to  the  fever ;  already  Kellerman  and 
Adam  have  been  attacked  and  looked  the  perfect 
pictures  of  despair.  Whilst  striking  the  tent  I 
was  attracted  by  the  appearance  of  one  of  the 
Fatiko  Abides,  who,  standing  among  his  comrades 
who  were  feeding  on  "  dourah,"  the  corn  of  the 
Soudan,  looked  with  a  shadow  of  melancholy  rest- 
ing upon  his  countenance,  the  picture  of  the  melan- 
choly Dane.     In  common  with  most  of  his  people 


THE    IRON    MAN    OF    FATIKO.  53 

no  dress  concealed  his  form ;  a  few  only  covered 
their  loins  with  the  skin  of  some  animal,  the  wild 
cat,  the  leopard,  or  the  deer.  *'Hadad,"or  "Hadid," 
as  he  was  called  by  the  Arabs,  was  innocent  of  all 
clothing  :  he  had  doubtless  received  his  name  from 
his  vocation  as  he  claimed  to  be  a  worker  in  iron, 
and  not  an  iron-man  as  his  name  might  signify, 
though  the  coils  of  finely  wro ugh t-iron  around  neck, 
arms,  and  legs,  would  fairly  justify  the  name. 

The  many  coils  of  iron  with  which  the  neck  was 
embraced  forbade  his  looking  downwards.  This 
fashion  is  not  uncommon  to  other  tribes  of  Central 
Africa,  and  particularly  noticed  as  common  to 
both  men  and  women  of  the  Makraka  Niam-Niam 
tribes,  westward  of  the  Bahr-el-Abiad.  Hadid  in 
this  respect  had  the  appearance  of  a  London  swell ; 
whilst  the  manipulation  of  his  hair  was  really  won- 
derful, giving  to  the  intricate  and  carefully  worked 
head-dress  and  chignon  the  aspect  of  a  Parisian 
belle. 

CalKng  Hadid  to  me,  I  addressed  him,  curious 
to  know  if  the  ever  problematical  question  of  the 
innate  existence  of  a  Deity  existed,  "  a  priori," 
with  the  untutored  savage  negro. 

"  Where  is  your  father  ?  " 

"  Dead." 

"  Where  do  you  think  he  has  gone  ?  " 

"Into  the  earth  at  Fatiko." 

"  Don't  you  think  he  has  gone  lo  heaven  ? " 
pointing  above. 


54  CENTRAL   AFEICA. 

With  the  utmost  disdain  he  said  to  me,  "  Don't 
bother  me  with  such  ideas  that  come  from  the 
'  canissa  '  (Gondokoro) ;  you  know  that  one  can 
never  climb  up  there." 

All  this  loses  by  relation,  but  the  gestures,  ex- 
pressions, and  accent  of  Hadid  were  such  as  to  pro- 
voke the  greatest  mirth.  The  tribe  of  the  Fatiko  are 
by  far  superior  to  any  tribes  I  have  ever  met  south 
of  Khartoum ;  more  industrious  and  more  honest. 
Their  language  is  like  the  yelp  of  a  dog,  and  the 
effect  upon  the  listener  for  the  first  time  very 
wonderful.  They  extract  the  lower  incisors,  per- 
forate the  lip,  and  introduce  either  a  piece  of  copper, 
or  well-shaped  bead',  held  in  its  place  by  a  head  like 
a  nail ;  this  is  the  fetiche  of  the  Fatiko ;  added  to 
which  his  ears  and  nose  are  encased  in  copper 
or  iron  ornaments.  Further  on,  I  shall  refer  to 
the  Fatiko  in  connexion  with  their  ideas  of  a 
Divinity. 

At  six  o'clock  we  break  camp,  and  after  four 
hours'  march  enter  the  Mogi  country.  Our  way 
leads  across  a  fine  undulating  country ;  at  the 
base  of  the  hills  run  water-courses,  whose  beds 
are  filled  with  mica  and  gneiss.  A  further  march 
of  four  hours,  and  we  encamp  under  a  large  tree, 
always  sought  for  in  selecting  a  bivouac  ground ; 
as  it  affords  shelter  from  the  rain  for  the  naked 
Abides,  who  cower  and  shiver  around  a  fire  that 
with  difficulty  can  be  made  to  burn,  owing  to  the 
now  saturated  wood. 


ATTACKED   BY   THE    MOGT   TEIBE.  55 

At  this  spot,  not  more  tlian  a  year  ago,  a  lieu- 
tenant with  thirty  men  eu  route,  returning  from 
Gondokoro  to  their  post,  were  surprised  at  night 
and  massacred  by  the  Mogi  tribe.  They  are 
regarded  as  a  cruel  and  treacherous  tribe,  and 
warned  by  their  menacing  attitude,  as  great  num- 
bers hung  upon  our  flank  since  entering  their 
territory,  I  made  the  proper  dispositions  to  anti- 
cipate any  attack ;  at  the  same  time  giving  the 
most  stringent  orders,  that  the  cordon  of  sentinels 
should  not  be  passed  either  by  soldier  or  Abide. 
This  order  may  not  have  been  understood  by  a 
number  of  Abides,  who  unobserved  had  entered 
the  village  and  commenced  "  to  loot."  Cries  of 
distress  soon  reached  my  ears;  I  mounted  my 
horse,  taking  with  me  a  detachment  of  Sou- 
daniehs ;  arriving  upon  the  ground  I  found  three 
Abides  pierced  with  lance-wounds  of  the  most 
horrible  nature.  Two  were  perfectly  dead,  the 
other  with  nine  wounds  was  still  liviug.  I  had 
him  borne  to  the  camp  on  the  shoulders  of  his 
comrades. 

The  "Mogi"  were  gathering  on  my  right  in 
great  numbers,  and  with  defiant  shouts  and 
gestures  were  evidently  preparing  to  attack. 
The  long  roll  was  beaten,  and  the  regulars  and 
irregulars  were  quickly  in  line;  soldiers'  wives, 
of  whom  there  are  always  an  unlimited  number, 
with  baggage,  being  placed  in  a  secure  position. 
I  should  state  here  that  the  soldier  of  the  Soudan 


56  CENTRAL   AFRICA. 

carries  but  seldom  either  knapsack  or  havresack. 
His  "  bint "  (woman)  does  this  office  for  him,  as 
well  as  grinds  his  rations  of  "  dourah  "  between 
two  stones,  whose  harsh,  hissing  sound  may  be 
heard  far  into  the  night,  as  the  preparation  of  the 
morning  repast  is  being  made  by  his  devoted  mate, 
who  accompanies  her  work  by  a  peculiar  song 
whose  notes  are  perfectly  indescribable.  I  had 
more  than  once  objected  to  what  I  deemed  an 
impediment  to  the  lightness  of  a  column  on  the 
march ;  experience  however  proved  to  me  after- 
wards that  a  soldier  encumbered,  through  jungle 
and  difficult  passes,  would  be  unable  to  cope  with 
the  ever  wary  savage ;  and  that  the  "  bint "  was 
a  "  sine  qua  non  "  to  prepare  his  meals ;  since  a 
column  of  soldiers  was  scarcely  ever  strong  enough 
to  dispense  even  temporarily  with  his  service  as  a 
sentinel,  whose  constant  vigilance  was  necessary  to 
guard  against  surprise.  There  are  no  beasts  of 
burden  in  Central  Africa,  save  the  negro,  who  is 
the  only  transport  of  the  "  impedimenta  "  of  the 
soldiers.  Unprovided  with  tents,  he  is  oftentimes 
obliged  to  seek  shelter  in  the  huts  of  the  savages ; 
a  necessity  that  the  latter,  to  whom  the  kinder 
instincts  of  pity  or  sympathy  are  unknown,  resists, 
and  hence  the  conflicts  that  often  occur.  To  return 
to  the  attack  that  was  now  being  made,  I  first  as- 
sured myself  of  the  proper  dispositions  for  defence 
of  the  camp,  and  joined  the  skirmish  line  already 
deployed,  where,  after  a  sharp  fire  upon  the  mass 


THE    MOGI    TRIBE    DISPERSED.  57 

collected  in  front,  we  charged  them  at  the  double 
quick,  and  they  disappeared  in  the  jungle  not  far 
away.  Eeturning  to  camp,  I  endeavoured  to 
staunch  the  wounds  of  the  Abide,  but  his  icy  cold 
flesh  and  glazed  eye  too  truly  told  me  that  he  was 
beyond  all  human  aid.  He  died,  and  was  buried 
at  sundown.  My  dragoman,  Ibrahim,  during  the 
affair  was  nearly  collapsed  with  fear;  and  my 
Sais  Suleiman  was  heard  upbraiding  him  for  his 
want  of  manliness.  Warned  by  the  surprise  and 
massacre  of  the  previous  detachment,  I  doubled 
the  sentinels,  relieving  them  every  half-hour.  I 
sat  through  the  long  silent  watches  of  the  night 
alone  with  the  storm  of  savage  elements  and  savage 
human  nature  that  raged  without ;  my  poor  tent 
was  now  absolutely  in  rags,  and  the  rain  came 
down  as  if  in  mockery  of  any  covering  whatever. 
My  pipe,  dear  companion  of  my  travels,  could 
not  aid  me  in  dispersing  the  sombre  phantoms 
that  these  silent  lonely  hours  summoned  up ;  for 
I  could  scarcely  light  it  ere  it  was  filled  with 
water. 

April  29th. — The  day  dawned  in  rain  and  mist; 
at  six  o'clock  coff'ee  was  served  to  the  troops 
from  my  little  store,  and  soon  after  the  column 
was  in  motion.  The  "  Mogites  "  appeared  upon 
our  rear  and  left  flank  to  the  number  of  three  or 
four  thousand,  but  contented  themselves  with  yells 
and  menacing  gestures  as  we  defiled  slowly  away ; 
weary,  cold,  and  cheerless,  as  on  the  day  before 


58  CENTEAL   AFEICA. 

we  had  bivouacked  on  this  inhospitable  soil.  The 
country  is  picturesque,  and  the  first  signs  of  culti- 
vation appear  as  we  proceed.  The  "  Mogi "  plant 
only  "  dourah,"  the  production  of  which  in  a 
limited  way  is  almost  the  sole  culture  of  the  Abide 
of  Central  Africa. 

Bivouac  at  four  o'clock  amid  a  pelting  rain. 
All  my  suite  have  fever,  save  my  two  soldiers. 

April  SOth. — At  six  o'clock  a.m.,  the  r^veil 
having  roused  the  camp  at  five  for  preparations  as 
usual,  we  are  en  route.  The  fever  of  the  night- 
before  had  left  me  weak  and  exhausted,  but  I  soon 
threw  off  its  influence  when  once  mounted.  The 
Mogi  still  followed  in  my  rear.  As  the  route  be- 
came difficult  and  of  a  jungle  character,  I  deter- 
mined to  engage  the  enemy,  who  evidently  hoped 
to  gain  advantage  of  a  pass  at  the  base  of  two 
mountains,  through  which  we  were  obliged  to 
defile.  With  a  handful  of  men  detached  from  the 
rear-guard,  I  attacked  them  sharply  with  ball  and 
bayonet :  they  precipitately  fled,  and  the  road  was 
.thus  left  open. 

A  three  hours'  march  brought  us  to  "  Lahore," 
the  country  of  a  friendly  Sheik  called  "Wani;" 
many  of  our  porters  were  natives  of  this  country, 
being  in  friendly  intercourse  with  the  Fatiko 
tribes.  As  we  rested  beneath  the  friendly  shade 
of  a  tree,  for  the  sun,  in  the  interval  of  rain  that 
falls,  shows  itself  with  fiercest  beams,  I  noticed 
with  curious  gaze  the   salutations  of  parents  that 


THE    "  LABORE."  59 

came  to  visit  their  cliildren  who  made  up  a  part 
of  our  porters.  The  "old  man"  would  take  be- 
tween his  two  hands  the  head  of  the  prodigal 
Abide,  and  gathering  a  mouthful  of  saliva,  eject 
it  upon  his  forehead  and  eyes,  which  in  turn 
was  applied  by  the  son  to  different  parts  of 
the  body. 

The  "  Lahore  "  speak  the  language  of  the  Madi, 
whose  country  is  adjacent ;  in  appearance  he  has 
the  same  outward  characteristics  as  the  Bari,  with- 
out his  timidity  or  his  treachery.  The  Labore 
woman  resembles  the  Bari  female  in  everything, 
except  that  the  tail,  which  hangs  from  behind,  is 
much  longer  and  almost  reaches  the  ground. 
The  men  and  women  are,  as  a  general  rule,  ugly 
and  brutal-looking. 

At  six  o'clock  I  observed  a  partial  eclipse  of  the 
moon. 

The  1st  of  May  at  six  o'clock  we  broke  camp, 
marching  through  a  mountainous  and  uneven 
country,  arriving  at  night  at  Loquia,  where  we 
encamped. 

May  2nd. — At  six  o'clock  a.m.,  with  accustomed 
regularity,  the  troop  is  put  in  motion ;  the  route 
leads  through  jungle  and  over  tortuous  stony 
paths.  Our  negro  guide  lost  completely  the  way  ; 
aided  by  my  compass  however  I  found  it  myself,  and 
thereby  secured  a  most  exalted  reputation  among 
my  negroes,  here  totally  at  fault.  These  roads 
are    simply  paths  broken  through  the  jungle  by 


CO  CENTRAL   AFRICA. 

elephant  or  buffalo,  in  this  respect  mucli  more 
provident  than  the  negro,  who  avails  himself  only 
of  the  serpentine  path  made  by  animals.  At  one 
o'clock  p.m.  we  arrived  at  the  "  Bahr-el- Asua  ; " 
a  river  whose  rocky  and  uncertain  bed,  now  ford- 
able,  becomes  a  raging  stream  later  under  the 
influence  of  the  rains.  This  latter  information 
came  from  the  natives,  but  I  crossed  it  later  in 
the  rainy  season  (month  of  October),  and  I  found 
it  fordable  though  much  swollen  ;  its  width  here  is 
about  one'hundred  yards,  and  its  depth  from  three 
to  four  feet.  We  marched  nine  hours  to-day ;  at 
three  o'clock  bivouacked.  The  consequent  fatigue 
has  greatly  told  upon  Ibrahim,  my  dragoman ; 
who  whether  from  his  scare  at  Mogi  or  otherwise, 
is  now  a  constant  victim  to  most  fearful  attacks  of 
fever. 

The  3rd  of  May  we  arrived  at  "  Shagarah-el- 
Miani,"  Miani's  Tree,  a  point  reached  by  Miani,  a 
well-known  African  traveller,  who  returning  to 
Khartoum  under  the  most  adverse  circumstances, 
that  here  demand  an  expression  of  sympathy  from 
me,  undertook  an  expedition  to  the  Bahr-el-Ghazal, 
where,  ere  he  had  accomplished  his  purpose, 
misery  and  suffering  in  a  deadly  climate  claimed 
him  as  a  victim. 

At  this  place,  Suleiman  with  his  Dongolowee 
command,  left  me  to  go  westward  to  Fabbo  and 
Faloro  (ivory  stations).  My  servant  Kellerman 
here  disheartened  by  the  rigours  of  his  African  life. 


BREAK-DOWN    OF    KELLERMAN.  61 

utterly  broke  down,  and  announced  himself  to  me 
as  a  "  gentleman  and  a  soldier,  and  the  son  of  a 
Marshal."  This  was  a  further  aggravation  of  my 
position,  since  1  had  hoped,  against  my  better 
judgment,  that  Kellerman  already  become  a  bur- 
den, w^ould  either  leave  me,  or  adapt  himself  to 
his  ill-advised  determination  to  accompany  me. 
I  would  have  sent  him  back,  but  I  had  not  the 
heart  to  abandon  him  to  the  uncertain  care  of  the 
savages. 

En  route,  I  had  an  exciting  chase  to  flank  a 
troop  of  "  ^rial"  deer,  but  they  are  too  wild,  and 
my  shots  were  made  only  with  the  object  of 
frightening,  rather  than  with  the  hope  of  reaching 
them ;  I  succeeded  however  in  wounding  one  in 
the  neck,  but  he  got  away  with  the  rest  of  the 
herd. 

We  encamped  at  four  o'clock  amid  a  fearful 
rainstorm. 

The  4th  of  May  at  six  o'clock,  amid  jungles 
and  country  cut  by  numerous  ravines,  we  com- 
menced the  weary  march,  losing  the  way  at  every 
moment ;  the  clouds  hung  heavy  above  us,  and  a 
thick  mist  prevented  us  from  bemg  certain  of  the 
road.  At  half-past  one  p.m.  we  bivouacked. 
During  the  march  two  of  our  porters  succumbed 
to  the  fatigue  of  the  route  and  insufficient  food, 
uncooked  "Dourah"  being  their  only  nourish- 
ment. Their  comrades  quickly  divested  them  of 
whatever  poor  ornaments  or  beads  they  possessed, 


G2  CENTRAL   AP'iflCA. 

heartlessly  leaving  them  without  burial — a  negli- 
gence that  horrified  me  then,  but  to  which  I  soon 
became  familiar  in  my  intimate  life  among  these 
tribes,  where  heartlessnessj  brutality,  and  selfish- 
ness are  the  rule. 

We  encamped  under  the  shadow  of  the  Shoua 
mountains,  from  which  point  Fatiko,  a  military 
post  flanked  by  Gebel  Franke,  could  be  seen  in 
the  distance,  over  a  country  less  wild  and  with 
but  little  jungle  to  obstruct  the  view.  Mj  camp 
was  pitched  among  huge  boulders  of  rock,  with 
a  grateful  little  rippling  rivulet  making  its  way 
through  them.  The  close  and  sultry  day  had 
given  place  to  a  clear  sky  and  a  brilliant  sunset, 
causing  an  elevation  of  spirits  among  all  my  suite 
and  as  well  among  the  poor  Fatiko  porters,  who 
assembled  to  partake  of  their  frugal  repast 
(dourah),  now  for  the  first  time  prepared  with 
boiling  water,  since  fire  had  been  denied  them  by 
the  incessant  rains,  that  had  rendered  the  use  of 
fuel  impossible,  by  reason  of  its  complete  satura- 
tion. 

Whilst  my  soldiers  were  pitching  my  tent  I  had 
strolled  around  the  mountain  that  hid  from  view 
the  setting  sun,  and  noticed  the  portentous  cloud 
that  emitted  sharp,  quick  flashes  of  lightning, 
coming  rapidly  upon  the  horizon,  but  which,  be- 
hind the  mountain  was  ignored  by  all.  On  my 
return  to  camp,  the  now  happy  Fatiko  flattering 
himself  that  his  repose  for  the  night  would  be 


ADDEESS    OF    GIMMORO.  63 

unbroken,  and  glad  of  heart  that  on  the  morrow 
he  would  rejoin  his  tribe  and  kindred  at  Fatiko, 
was  giving  vent  to  boisterous  cries  of  joy.  The 
moment  seemed  propitious'  to  "  Gimmoro,"  the 
native  Sheik  ''grand  diplomat,"  to  exhibit  his 
powers  not  only  as  a  rain-maker,  but  as  a  rain- 
controUer  as  well.  The  heavens  were  bright  with 
stars,  and  the  Fatiki  were  assembled  in  congress, 
Gimmoro  addressed  them  as  follows  : — 

"  0  Lubari,  thou  who  art  my  slave,  thou  who 
hast  maltreated  my  people  on  the  road  and  wet 
them  continually !  I  order  thee  not  to  do  so 
again ;  leave  them  then,  and  go  away  at  my  bid- 
ding !  " 

The  Fatiki  received  this  speech  of  their  Sheik 
with  confidence  and  enthusiasm,  and  around 
a  grateful  fire  retired  to  sleep  ;  two  hours  later,  a 
fearful  drenching  storm  fell  upon  the  camp,  put- 
ting out  the  fires,  and  rendering  sleep  impossible. 
In  the  morning,  observing  great  commotion 
among  the  Abides,  I  learned  that  they  had  lost  all 
confidence  in  Gimmoro,  and  threats  were  being 
made  to  dispossess  him,  nay  more,  kill  him  for  his 
diplomatic  failure.  I  went  to  his  aid,  however,  in 
explaining  to  his  followers  that  as  a  rain-maker 
myself,  and  of  greater  influence,  I  had  addressed 
myself  secretly  to  Lubari  that  it  might  rain,  and 
that  Gimmoro  could  not  be  held  responsible  for 
the  disobedience  of  his  orders.    This  was  believed, 

and  the  credulous  Fatiki  retained  their  Sheik.     I 

F 


64  CENTRAL   AFEIOA. 

have  said  elsewhere  that  the  Negro  has  no  innate 
idea  of  a  Divinity;  his  superstition  and  his 
caprice  acting  in  place  thereof.  "  Lubari "  in 
more  than  one  African  idiom  signifies  "  firma- 
ment;" and  in  appealing  to  Lubari,  rain  that  falls 
therefrom  is  meant  for  and  becomes  their  god,  the 
Jupiter  Pluvius  and  obedient  servant  of  their  Sheik, 
without  which  power  no  Sheik  may  be  chosen. 

At  six  o'clock  we  put  ourselves  en  route, 
arriving  after  a  brisk  march  at  Fatiko  at  half-past 
eleven  a.m.  Huge  rocks  lined  the  wayside,  on 
whose  heights  were  perched  the  anxious  comrades 
of  my  porters,  gathered  to  welcome  their  return. 
A  halt  was  made  for  the  purpose  of  allowing  my 
escort  to  dofi'  their  soiled  and  tattered  uniforms 
for  brisrhter  ones.  When  we  resumed  the  march 
over  a  country,  where  great  granite  rocks  peered 
from  the  rolling  ground,  and  where  splendid 
springs  of  water  gushed  forth,  two  abrupt  moun- 
tains in  close  proximity  to  the  camp,  lent  to  the 
landscape  a  boldness  that  was  pleasant  to  the  eye. 
The  garrison  in  open  order  received  me  at  the 
gate ;  their  snowy  uniform  in  strange  contrast  to 
their  ebony  hue ;  for  the  men  and  officers  compose 
a  part  of  the  Soudanieh  Corps,  many  of  whom 
wear  the  decoration  for  service  in  their  Mexican 
campaign.  I  was  received  with  enthusiasm  by 
the  whole  garrison,  and  by  the  officers.  A  formal 
reception,  as  is  customary,  was  immediately  given 
me,  as  I  was  shown  to  a  neatly-constructed  hut, 


ARRIVAL   AT   FATIKO.  65 

where  I  stood  to  receive  the  native  ofi&cers  as 
they  passed  in  and  out  through,  the  opposite  door, 
with  the  accustomed  Alakoum  Salaam.  They 
heard  with,  astonishment  that  I  was  going  to  the 
Great  Lake,  with  only  two  soldiers  and  my  ser- 
vants ;  and  many  were  the  exclamations  of 
"Wallai*"  (by  God),  made  by  these  men,  who 
knew  the  almost  desperate  venture  on  which  I 
was  embarking,  and  thus  expressed  their  astonish- 
ment at  my  rashness. 


CHAPTER  VIT. 

Fatiko,  its  strong  position — Adjutant-Major  Abdallah — Lango 
and  Lobbohr — Wat-el-Mek — Merissa — Unsavoury  Milk 
— Dances  of  the  Soudanieh  Soldiers — March  southward — 
Jungles,  bogs — Elephant  holes — Fetid  odours — Son  of 
the  ex-king  Rionga — Prepare  to  cross  the  Nile — Dangers 
from  Hippopotami  and  Crocodiles — Successful  Passage  of 
the  River — Foueira — Reception  of  Said  and  Abd-el- 
Rahman  by  their  former  Comrades — The  ex-king  Rionga 
— Keba  Rega — Riongi  Pottery  —  Obliged  to  leave  the 
Albert  Nyanza  question  partially  unsolved. 

Fatiko  is  a  neat  little  earthwork  surrounded  by 
a  fosse  about  ten  feet  deep,  constructed  by  Sir 
Samuel  Baker,  flanked  on  its  western  side  by  a 
huge  rock  mountain  tkat  serves  as  well  for  a 
look-out.  Its  position  and  construction  render  it 
almost  impregnable,  certainly  against  any  African 
force.  From  its  rocky  eminence  one  migbt  see  the 
Nile,  though  more  than  a  day's  march  distant 
westward,  winding  its  serpentine  way  from  the 
Albert  Nyanza.  The  commander  of  the  post  was 
Adjutant-Major  Abdallah,  who,  with  many  other 
officers  on  service  in  those  regions,  was  one  of  the 
Soudanieh  Corps,  that  served  in  the  Mexican 
campaign  under  Bazaine.     During  my  stay  at  the 


ADJUTANT-MAJOR   ABD ALLAH.  Q'7 

post  he  wore  Ms  decoration  of  tlie  Legion  of 
Honour,  conferred  by  the  late  Emperor  Napoleon 
upon  him  and  others,  when  his  corps,  return- 
ing, passed  through  Paris.  It  gives  me  no  little 
pleasure  to  refer  here  to  the  cleanliness  and 
discipline  of  his  command,  and  the  esprit  de  corps 
which  he  had  instilled  into  both  oflScers  and 
men ;  nor  can  I  now  forget  to  mention  the  care 
and  consideration  with  which  my  every  wish  was 
complied  with;  for,  thus  early  in  the  march,  I 
was  obliged  to  ask  his  aid  in  making  our  only  tent 
habitable,  by  countless  patches  from  a  few  yards  of 
cotton-cloth  in  his  possession.  At  the  same  time 
he  also  gave  me  several  donkeys  which,  notwith- 
standing their  savage  and  "mulish"  propensities, 
rendered  me  very  great  service.  These  donkeys 
are  found  in  "  Lango  "  and  "  Lobbohr,"  '  countries 
lying  east  and  south-east  of  Fatiko ;  whence  the 
natives,  speaking  an  unknown  idiom,  had  already 
reached  Fatiko,  and  had  come  beseeching  the 
commander  of  the  post  to  aid  their  tribe  in  rob- 
bing and  enslaving  an  adjacent  hostile  people ! — 

^  Sir  Samuel  Baker  has  said  in  "  Ismailia,"  vol.  ii.  page 
119,  "In  the  Lobbohr  there  is  a  river  called  Juba  ;  this  is, 
I  believe,  the  Juba  that  flows  into  the  Indian  Ocean." 

Having  been  called  to  command  the  land  forces,  in  an 
Expedition  organized  by  his  Highness  the  Khedive  in  the  month 
of  September,  1 875,  on  the  East  coast  of  Africa,  with  a  view 
to  geographical  and  scientific  research,  I  explored  the  unknown 
river  Juba  for  a  distance  of  150  miles.  Its  source,  however, 
could  not  for  the  moment  be  definitely  ascertained. 


68  CENTRAL    AFRICA. 

a  proposal  that  tlie  gallant  ojBScer  repelled  with 
disdain.  I  refrain  from  any  outburst  of  enthu- 
siasm in  regard  to  this  place,  and  cannot  concur 
in  Sir  S.  Baker's  eulogy  of  the  Fatiko  country  as 
the  Paradise  of  Central  Africa.  Here  in  the 
immediate  vicinity  are  two  wild  bluff-like  moun- 
tains ;  whilst  afar  on  the  horizon  in  the  vicinity  of 
the  river  may  be  seen  Faloro  and  Fabbo;  for 
the  rest,  a  low  table-land  that  soon  loses  itself,  as 
you  turn  southward,  in  that  low  marshy  pestife- 
rous country  of  Unyoro,  through  whose  confines 
we  are  to  pass. 

Wat-el-Mek,  the  wekil  of  Abou  Saoiid,  has  been 
made  no  unimportant  figure  in  the  expedition  of 
Sir  S.  Baker.  Among  the  ofiicers  who,  on  the 
day  of  my  arrival,  defiled  past  me  in  salutation, 
as  I  stood  to  receive  them  in  the  neat  little  hut 
assigned  me,  I  noticed  a  tall,  very  black  man, 
dressed  in  the  uniform  peculiar  to  the  "  Dongo- 
lowee  " — a  long  white  tunic,  confined  at  the  waist 
by  a  belt  which  supported  a  Turkish  scimitar — 
Turkish  "bags"  of  same  material,  bound  up  to 
the  knees,  however,  by  leggings  of  raw-hide,  his 
feet  encased  in  Turkish  slippers.  Sundry  little 
talismans  in  leather,  the  peculiar  mark  of  distinc- 
tion of  the  inhabitants  of  the  Soudan,  hung  from 
his  belt,  his  face  was  deeply  marked  with  small- 
pox, and  the  effect  of  "Merissa"  was  clearly 
shown  in  his  husky  voice  and  blood-shot  eyes. 
Merissa   is  a  fermented  beverage    known  in  all 


WAT-EL-MEK.  69 

Central  Africa,  and  made  either  of  dourali  or 
bananas,  and  is  the  great  drink  common  to  all 
these  negroes.     This  was  Wat-el-Mek. 

Neither  Abou  Saoiid,  nor  Wat-el-Mek  ever 
seemed  to  me  necessary  to  the  government  of 
these  provinces  ;  since  they  could  not  but  long  for 
the  entire  possession  of  a  country  they  deemed 
their  own.  This  appeared  to  me  so  natural  that 
I  looked  upon  "Wat-el-Mek,  as  I  had  on  Abou, 
as  opposed  to  the  object  of  my  mission,  and  the 
mission  of  the  government,  then  at  Gondokoro. 
Having  no  incentive  to  evil,  however,  Wat-el-Mek 
was  possibly  a  very  good  fellow  ;  and  my  mention 
to  him  of  his  connexion  with  the  expedition  of 
Sir  S.  Baker  gave  him  great  pleasure.  At  this 
time  he  was  exercisino;  the  function  of  Sheik- el- 
Bilad  over  the  Fatiko  country,  under  the  pro- 
tection of  the  garrison  at  Fatiko.  He  desired 
to  accompany  me  southward  as  far  as  Foueira, 
the  last  outpost  on  the  Nile  on  the  borders  of 
IJnyoro  (Keba  Rega's  country),  where  there  was 
a  Dongolowee  camp  of  eighty  soldiers,  in  addi- 
tion to  190  regular  soldiers  of  the  Soudanieh 
Corps. 

The  Adjutant-Major  Abdallah  interested  him- 
self so  far  in  my  trip  southward,  though  he  con- 
sidered it  Utopian  at  that  season,  when  the  rains 
had  become  absolutely  terrible,  as  to  offer  to 
detach  from  his  command,  weakened  by  disease 
and  wounds  from  which  the  soldiers  suffered  in 


70  CENTEAL   AFRICA. 

passing  tlie  esch  (jungle  grass),  a  soldier  whose 
name  was  Selim,  a  native  of  Zanzibar,  and  who 
spoke  the  Ugunda  language.  I  gladly  accepted 
the  offer,  and  Selim  was  added  to  my  force.  As 
the  Adjutant-Major  told  me  he  would  be  a  check 
upon  the  machinations  of  the  wily  Ba  Beker,  who 
had  already  commenced  to  show  signs  of  jealousy, 
and  of  whose  character  for  treachery,  already 
known  to  the  Adjutant-Major,  I  had  been  con- 
vinced from  the  first. 

On  the  morning  of  the  8th  of  May.  whilst 
struggling  with  an  attack  of  fever,  I  received  a 
visit  from  '"  Gimmoro,"  who  brought  me  a  gourd 
of  milk  as  an  expression  of  gratitude  for  saving 
him,  at  an  opportune  moment,  his  position.  Burn- 
ing with  fever,  I  drained  at  one  draught  a  goblet 
full  of  the  foaming  fluid,  ere  the  sense  of  taste 
could  detect  the  nauseous  mixture ;  my  stomach, 
however,  quickly  rebelled  and  rejected  in  violent 
retching /the  unsavoury  potion,  seven-eighths  of 
which  were  simply  the  urine  of  the  cow ! ! — a 
practice,  by-the-bye,  common  to  all  Central 
Africans,  who  never  drink  milk  unless  thus 
mixed.  This  fetish  and  superstition  thereby  in- 
sures protection  for  thp  cow,  here  as  on  the  Bahr- 
el-Abiad,  mysteriously  connected  with  the  un- 
known :<  a  shadow  possibly  of  the  old  Egyptian 
worship. 

The  Fatiko  men  wear  across  their  shoulders, 
leaving  thus  their  persons  exposed,  only  a  small 


DANCES    OP   THE    SOUDANIEH    SOLDIERS.  71 

skin  of  leopard,  wild-cat,  or  deer.  The  women 
generally  go  entirely  naked ;  their  head-dress 
being  the  sole  object  of  adornment,  and  certainly 
in  this  respect  they  rank  with  the  most  accom- 
plished coiflPeur.    c 

As  soon  as  the  sun  sinks,  night,  unheralded 
by  twilight,  comes  quickly  on.  Then  the  happy 
Soudanieh  soldiers  gather  around  a  blazing  fire, 
that  serves  to  warm  them,  as  well  as  to  illuminate 
the  scene.  His  "bint"  (woman)  joins  him  in  the 
dance — now  the  nightly  orgies.  And  it  so  closely 
resembles  the  "  Cancan  "  of  the  Jardin  Mabille, 
that  I  have  often  speculated  on  the  possibility  of 
that  famous  dance  having  originated  here,  while 
watching  and  envying  the  gambols  of  these  grown- 
up children,  under  such  adverse  circumstances. 

From  the  9th  to  the  11th  of  May  I  was  occu- 
pied in  preparations  for  my  trip  southward,  in 
recovering  strength,  and  in  mending  my  tent. 
Kellerman  and  my  cook  were  both  very  ill,  but 
insisted  on  accompanying  me.  The  morning  of  the 
12th,  at  half-past  eight  o'clock,  we  quitted  Fatiko. 
The  Adjutant-Major  gave  mo  an  escort  as  far  as 
Foueira,  and  Wat-el-Mek  accompanied  me  as  well 
as  Selim,  though  Ba  Beker  had  strenuously  resisted 
his  appointment.  The  truth  was  that  Selim  spoke 
the  TJgunda  language,  and  would  be  invaluable  to 
me  as  an  interpreter.  Ba  Beker  saw  and  feared 
this;  and  his  jealousy  of  Selim  was  very  appa- 
rent. 


72  CENTRAL   AFRICA. 

Though,  weak  and  ill  from  fever,  and  almost 
unable  to  mount  my  horse,  I  gladly  take  the  road ; 
as  inaction  and  uncertainty  are  great  incentives 
to  fever  with  me.  The  route  runs  through  great 
jungles,  and  is  rough,  wild,  and  uninhabited. 
Elephant,  deer,  and  buffalo  abound  in  great 
numbers.  I  succeeded  in  bringing  down  a  deer, 
firing  from  my  horse;  but  a  wide  stretch  of 
nauseous  bog  prevented  me  from  getting  the 
game.  My  poor  horse,  Ugunda,  struggles  and 
slips  through  the  black  pasty  ground,  and  often 
falls  into  the  great  elephant  holes  that  one  sees 
at  every  step.  "We  bivouacked  at  four  o'clock, 
and  here  we  are  all  attacked  with  severe  fever. 

Mmj  ISth. — En  route  at  seven  a.m.,  the  road 
is  very  difficult,  and  the  rain  terrible.  During 
the  march  a  herd  of  tetel  {A.ntilope  hiibalis)  cross 
my  path;  a  chance  quick  shot  wounds  one  in 
the  neck.  Bivouac  amid  rain-storm  at  three 
o'clock. 

May  14th. — Fetid  odours  asphyxiate  us  as  we 
pass  the  low  marshy  plains.  Here,  as  elsewhere 
in  Africa,  we  were  obliged  to  drink  water  from  the 
elephant  and  buffalo  holes,  and  the  smell  and  taste 
is  nauseating  in  the  extreme.  Rain  at  two  o'clock ; 
and  we  bivouac. 

May  16th. — Our  guide  lost  the  way  this  morn- 
ing ;  found  it,  however,  though  the  rain  prevents 
our  seeing  ahead  of  us.  At  mid-day  we  are 
obliged  to  encamp. 


PEEPAEE    TO    CROSS    THE    NILE.  73 

Mo/if  16f/i.  —En  route  at  six  o'clock.  The  Inimi- 
dity  is  very  great ;  the  route  leads  through  jungle 
that,  the  natives  tell  me,  becomes  almost  impas- 
sable a  few  months  later — a  perfect  netted  mass  of 
grass.  A  march  of  eight  hours  brings  us  in 
close  proximity  to  the  river,  where  we  encamp, 
to  await  the  preparations  for  our  transit  across. 
This  they  told  me;  but  delay  is  ever  one  of 
the  ingredients  of  life  in  Central  Africa ;  here  it 
really  means  to  give  time  to  the  post  to  prepare 
to  receive  me  with  proper  honours ;  and,  as  cus- 
tomary, allow  my  escort  time  to  wash  and  renew 
their  tattered  uniforms. 

May  17th. — At  early  dawn  we  broke  camp  and 
approached  the  river  through  a  long,  deep  marsh, 
overgrown  in  jungle-grass  and  papyrus ;  sinking 
to  the  knees  at  each  step  in  the  liquid  inky  soil, 
"  Ugunda  "  jumps,  starts  with  terror  as  the  mud 
yields  under  his  weight.  More  than  an  hour  was 
consumed  in  this  march  of  a  mile  only.  We 
arrived  finally  on  the  banks  of  the  river,  where  we 
found  awaiting  us  boats  sent  by  the  Adjutant- 
Major,  and  with  them  the  son  of  the  ex-king 
Rionga,  an  intelligent,  good-looking  young  negro  of 
eighteen  years,  who  had  been  sent  by  Rionga  to 
salute  me  and  aid  in  my  transit  of  the  river. 

The  river  Nile  is  here  100  yards  wide  and  very 
deep,  describing  a  westerly  course  as  it  passes  to 
Karuma  Falls,  where  its  hoarse  murmur  is  dis- 
tinctly heard  not  far  away.     On  the  opposite  bank 


/4  OENTEAL   AFRICA. 

(south)  is  "  Foueira,"  a  military  post  under  com- 
mand of  Adjutant-Major  Baba-Tuka.  The  high 
opposing  banks,  almost  cliffs,  render  the  scene 
quite  imposing — in  striking  contrast  to  the  low- 
lands that  have  marked  the  journey  from  Fatiko. 
The  river  is  filled  with  hippopotami  and  croco- 
diles ;  the  former  in  undisturbed  possession  seemed 
to  dispute  our  passage,  by  their  uncomfortable 
proximity  and  fearful  roars ;  the  latter  were  still 
more  dangerous.  Not  a  day  passed  but  that  some 
too  venturesome  native  was  seized  in  or  near  the 
river.  To  swim  my  horse  across  them  was  not 
to  be  thought  of.  What  was  I  to  do  ?  To 
build  a  raft  would  take  too  much  time ;  and  the 
"  dug-outs  "  trembled  under  the  tread  of  a  man. 
A  tree  had  served  as  the  dug-out  of  one  of 
them;  and  I  resolved,  if  possible,  to  induce 
"  Ugunda  "  to  enter  it,  placing  weeds,  grass,  and 
mud  over  the  interval  between  the  edge  and  the 
bank.  The  poor  beast  trembled  with  fear,  and 
refused  absolutely  to  move.  With  the  assistance 
of  Said,  however,  I  bound  my  handkerchief  over 
his  eyes,  and  with  the  help  of  the  Abides  finally 
forced  him  into  the  uncertain  canoe :  poor 
"Ugunda"  shook  with  fear,  as  conscious  of  the 
danger,  for  the  slightest  movement  would  have 
caused  it  to  upset,  and  sent  us  all  into  the  jaws  of 
the  crocodiles,  who  were  only  kept  away  now  by 
a  volley  of  balls  into  their  midst,  so  audacious 
had  they  become. 


SUCCESSFUL   PASSAGE    OF   THE   EIVER.  75 

The  excitement  attendant  upon  getting  him  in 
the  boat,  and  the  dread  of  losing  the  faithful  beast 
gave  place,  on  my  safely  reaching  the  opposite 
shore,  to  a  wild  exclamation  of  joy,  in  which  the 
Rionga  Abides  heartily  joined ;  Ugunda  himself 
looked  more  appreciative  than  a  horse  might  be 
expected  under  such  circumstances.  I  had  another 
reason  to  be  thankful ;  fever  and  lassitude  had  for 
several  days  attacked  me,  my  few  rations  were 
exhausted,  and  weary  and  ill  I  welcomed  this 
last  military  post  as  a  haven  of  rest.  Could  I 
have  looked  into  the  future,  and  seen  a  pano- 
ramic view  of  the  perils  that  awaited  me  in  my 
voyage  south,  and  my  return  six  months  later  at 
this  post,  almost  dead  with  starvation  and  disease, 
I  would  have  thought  but  little  of  my  ills  then  in 
comparison.  As  I  ascended  the  high  bluff-like 
bank  on  which  the  camp  is  situated,  I  was  received 
first  by  the  Dongolowee  irregulars  with  their  cus- 
tomary honours :  namely,  the  firing  of  guns,  that 
results  often  in  accident  to  themselves,  and  to  him 
who  is  being  honoured.  Farther  up  the  bank,  I 
passed  to  the  camp  of  the  regular  garrison,  com- 
posed of  about  190  men  of  the  same  Soudanieh 
Corps  spoken  of  at  Fatiko.  Like  the  latter,  men 
and  ofiicers  had  served  in  Mexico,  and  the  com- 
manding ofl&cer,  Baba  Tuka,  wears  the  decoration 
of  the  "Legion  of  Honour."  His  troops  received 
me  at  open  order,  with  "  Salaam  Dohr,"  presented 
arms !     It  needed  but  a  glance  to  recognize   in 


76  CENTRAL   AFRICA. 

these  black  veterans  the  auxiliaries  of  Bazaine, 
for  tlieir  soldierly  bearing,  even  in  this  fearful 
climate,  was  still  maintained,  though,  they  had 
been  here  several  years.  The  camp  was  a  model 
of  neatness  and  order. 

Said  and  Abd-el-Rahman  belonged  to  this 
corps;  and  they  were  received  with  enthusiastic 
"  wallai's  "  from  their  ancient  comrades. 

The  earthwork  is  surrounded  by  a  fosse  of 
insignificant  depth ;  the  camp  itself  is  composed 
of  the  straw  huts  common  to  the  country. 

Without  the  camp,  and  along  the  river  bank, 
the  banana  is  seen  in  groves  that,  commencing 
from  this  point,  mark  the  entire  country  south- 
ward. Here,  as  in  Ugunda,  the  peculiar  tree  of 
the  country  is  a  species  of  wild-fig,  the  adjunct  of 
every  hut,  cultivated  for  its  bark  that  is  cut  in 
strips  as  long  as  the  trunk  of  the  tree  and  then 
prepared  by  being  beaten  with  a  peculiar  wooden 
instrument.  The  pieces  are  sewn  together  neatly, 
making  quite  a  large  sheet,  which  is  worn  like  the 
Roman  toga,  the  two  ends  being  tied  over  the  left 
shoulder. 

Rionga,  dispossessed  of  his  kingdom  at  Mrooli 
by  Kamrasi,  the  late  king  of  Unyoro,  lives  at 
Rionga  Island,  eight  to  ten  miles  from  the  camp  at 
Foueira.  He  has  always  been  friendly  to  the 
government,  and  has  sought  its  protection.  Brave 
and  warlike,  he  is  still  surrounded  by  his  faithful 
subjects  and  fellow-exiles,  and  still  dreams  of  re- 


THE    EX-KING   EIONGA.  77 

gaining  his  throne.  I  was  singularly  impressed 
with  the  ex-king,  a  man  of  fifty  years  of  age.  A 
shade  of  perpetual  melancholy  rests  upon  his 
modest  and  handsome  features.  Of  a  slight  copper 
tint,  Rionga  has  none  of  the  characteristics  of  the 
negro ;  loyal  and  honest,  the  Adjutant-Major  has 
told  me  that  his  word  is  his  bond.  Keba  Rega's 
crown  rests  uneasily  upon  his  head  so  long  as 
Rionga  lives ;  for  he  feels,  that  at  no  distant  day, 
Rionga  will  avenge  upon  him  the  injuries  done 
him  by  his  predecessor  Kamrasi.  They  told  me 
that  only  a  few  days  before  my  arrival  Keba  Rega 
had  written  to  the  Adjutant-Major  professing  love 
for  the  government,  and  offering  a  large  sum  of 
ivory  to  betray  Rionga  into  his  hands ! 

Rionga  pays  tribute  of  ivory  to  M'Tse,  whenever 
the  opportunity  offers  to  evade  the  vigilance  of 
Keba  Rega,  through  whose  territory  it  is  obliged 
to  pass.  I  made  him  several  insignificant  presents 
of  beads  and  tarbouches,  and  he  invited  me  to 
visit  him,  on  my  route  southward,  at  his  palace  at 
Kissembois. 

The  Riongi  tribe,  as  well  as    the   Unyori  and 

Ugundi,   speak  a  common   language.      The  two 

former  wear,  in  many  cases,  the  cloth  spoken  of 

previously  as  manufactured  from  the  bark  of  a 

tree ;    the  greater  portion,  however,   go  entirely 

naked,   whilst  in  Ugunda  clothing  is  obligatory. 

If  the  government  of  Rionga  is  weak,  I  believe  he 

never  exercises  over  his  subjects  the  punishment 

G 


78  CENTllAL    AFRICA. 

of  deatli ;  nor  does  he  use  fhe  strange  hereditary 
prerogative  of  African  kings,  as  Keba  Eega  and 
M'Tse,  of  wholesale  massacre,  if  caprice  should 
will  it.  Their  colour  is  less  of  that  copper  hue 
that  distinguishes  the  Ugundi,  but  they  are  tall 
and  muscular  and  capable  of  great  fatigue.  Their 
principal  food  is  banana,  sweet  potatoes,  and  fish ; 
they  raise  cattle  and  goats,  but  strange  to  say, 
like  other  negroes,  they  make  no  other  use  than  of 
the  milk.  The  winged  ant  serves  as  an  article 
of  food  for  the  poorer  classes,  a  fact  cited  in 
notes  of  expedition  to  the  Makraka  Niam-Niam, 
as  a  necessity  consequent  upon  the  absence  of 
meat.  The  Eiongi  manufacture  pottery  of  curious 
device,  and  their  milk  jars  and  pots  are  really 
beautiful;  the  gourd  that  grows  here,  however, 
has  been  admirably  adapted  by  nature  for  holding 
liquids,  whether  milk,  or  the  "  Merissa,"  the  very 
general  intoxicating  beverage  used  by  all  tribes 
along  the  Bahr-el-Abiad.  In  common  with  the 
tribes  in  question  they  are  armed  with  the  lance. 

My  stay  was  prolonged  at  Foueira,  first  because 
Kellerman  and  Adam  were  both  too  sick  to 
march ;  the  former  having  with  strange  infatuation 
persuaded  me  to  permit  him  to  accompany  me ; 
and,  in  the  next  place,  because  of  the  difiiculties 
of  procuring  a  few  porters,  to  carry  baggage,  and 
the  presents  intended  for  King  M'Tse. 

In  my  report,  dated  from  this  place  to  Col. 
Gordon,   I  said,  "  In  returning  I  shall  force  my 


THE    ALBERT   NYAKZA    QUESTION   UNSOLVED.         79 

way  througli  the  Lake  Albert,  thence  north  back 
by  the  river  to  the  highest  navigable  point."  On 
my  return,  without  the  means,  I  was  obliged  to 
leave  the  question  of  the  Albert  Nyanza  still  un- 
solved, when  it  was  fairly  in  my  grasp,  for  reasons 
which  shall  be  given  later. 


CHAPTER  VIII. 

March  southward  — Changes  ia  mj  Troop  — Arrival  at 
Kissembois — Kindly  received  by  Rionga — Mosquitoes — 
Jungle  fever — Pinto — Depart  for  Ugunda  — Cruelty  of  a 
Sheik — Filthy  water  — River  Kafou — General  Sickness — 
Uninteresting  scenery  —  Fire  "  against  the  country  " — 
Morako,  the  Sheik,  makes  a  Raid  —  Enter  Ugunda  — 
Dreadful  Roads  of  Putrid  Mud — The  Grand  Kahotah — 
Invitation  to  Ugunda — Arrest  of  Ibrahim,  my  Dragoman 
— Illness  of  Said — We  march,  preceded  by  the  Kahotah, 
to  the  Court  (Jf  M'Tse — Flag  of  Ugunda— Body-guards  of 
M'Tse — Halted  in  front  of  the  Palac6 — Taken  for  a 
Centaur — Led  to  my  Zeriba — Sound  Repose. 

On  tlie  morning  of  the  25tli  of  May,  after  many- 
attempts  that  had  proved  vain,  I  started  south- 
ward with  the  followers  heretofore  mentioned, 
with  the  addition  of  "  Selim."  The  rains  were 
now  almost  incessant,  and  the  roads  running 
sluices.  My  dragoman  Ibrahim  was  becoming 
drunken,  disobedient  and  surly;  more  than  once 
he  had  intimated  that  I  was  taking  him  into  the 
country  to  die;  and  his  cowardly  conduct  at 
"Mogi"  left  me  entirely  without  the  slightest 
confidence  in  him.  Suleiman,  my  brave  and 
faithful  Sai's,  suffering  from  an  old  wound,  from 


KINDLY   EECEIVED   BY   KIONGA.  81 

poisonous  grass,  that  here  is  very  difficult  to 
cure,  liad  become  entirely  helpless,  really  in  a 
pitiable  state  :  and  I  was  obliged,  much  against 
my  will,  to  leave  him  at  the  garrison.  Selim  was 
appointed  Sai's,  and  "  Ugunda  "  was  transferred  to 
his  care.  As  I  rode  on,  in  front  -of  my  little 
column  that  morning,  already  weakened  by  fever, 
and  suffering  from  my  now  chronic  state  of  wet, 
I  tried  to  think  that  I  was  more  hopeful  than  on 
the  morning  I  had  left  Gondokoro,  just  one  month 
before  :  but  the  painful  conclusion  forced  itself 
upon  me,  that  I  was  without  a  reasonable  hope  of 
success.  I  look  back  to  that  ride,  that  morning, 
as  among  the  darkest  hours  of  my  life.  More 
than  once  I  decided  to  abandon  an  enterprise 
that  now  began  to  look  fool-hardy — for  failure 
meant  certain  death.  In  the  midst  of  this  gloomy 
and  uncertain  mood,  we  arrived  at  Kissembois, 
after  four  and  a  half  hours'  march. 

Rionga  came  to  greet  me  arrayed  in  his  war 
dress,  which  consisted  of  a  wonderful  robe  made 
of  the  bark  of  tree,  but  wrought  in  the  most 
beautiful  manner;  parallel  lines  of  black  dots 
crossed  the  Roman  like  costume;  whilst  with 
sandals  on  his  feet  and  spear  in  hand,  "  he  looked 
every  inch  a  king."  I  was  quickly  surrounded 
by  his  men  of  state,  all  dressed  in  cloth  similar 
to  that  worn  by  Rionga,  but  more  simple.  His 
numerous  wives  stood  without  the  circle,  and 
their  repeated  "  Wah  !  wahs  !  "  proclaimed  their 


82  CENTRAL   AFRICA. 

astonislmient  at  sight  of  both  white  man  and  horse. 
Huts  were  assigned  me,  and  soon  his  sons  came 
bearing  me  great  pots  of  milk,  bunches  of  bananas, 
sweet  potatoes,  and  "merissa"  made  from  com- 
pressed bananas.  This  drink  has  been  highly 
spoken  of  by  Sir  Samuel  Baker,  and  both  he  and 
Lady  Baker  were  accustomed  to  drink  it ;  to  me, 
however,  both  the  odour  and  flavour  were  dis- 
gusting. 

At  night,  a  dance  was  given  in  my  honour  ;  the 
novelty  of  which  caused  me  to  forget,  for  the 
moment,  my  sombre  thoughts  and  forebodings.  I 
made  them  several  presents  of  beads,  cloth,  tin 
fifes,  &c.  I  had  with  me  a  small  magnetic  battery 
with  which  I  gave  them  a  rude  exhibition ;  that  is 
to  say,  I  knocked  several  of  them  down.  If  I 
were  an  enthusiast  in  the  idea  of  the  quick  rege- 
neration of  the  African,  I  would  suggest  the  use 
of  the  magnetic  battery ;  it  clothes  the  possessor 
with  every  attribute  human  and  divine,  and  the 
negro  yields  a  ready  submission.  This  little 
"Lubari"  was  an  open  sesame  for  me  to  the 
African  heart;  and  with  my  horse  "Ugunda," 
my  good  star  had  placed  in  my  hands  two 
talismans  that  were  to  win  success,  where  others 
stronsf  in  resources,  arms,  and  soldiers  had 
failed. 

I  scarcely  need  add  that  each  shock  ad- 
ministered them  (and  they  were  by  no  means 
delicate    ones),    was    received     with     shouts    of 


JUNGLE   PEVEB.  83 

laughter  and  Wall  !  walis  !  of  wonder  and  super- 
stitious awe.  I  turned  from  the  friendly  crowd 
with  a  lighter  heart :  I  had  a  friend  in  the  future 
I  had  not  counted  upon.  We  then  were  five, 
viz.  myself,  Said  and  Abd-el,  "  Ugunda "  my 
horse,  and  little  "  Lubari,"  the  magnetic  ma- 
chine. 

The  mosquitoes  here  were  so  thick,  and  their 
bites  so  irritating  and  poisonous,  that  sleep  was 
impossible.  Kissembois  is  situated  in  the  bend 
of  the  river,  that  here,  in  a  serpentine  way  regains 
its  general  direction  southward  or  south-eastward. 
The  land  is  low  and  boggy,  and  during  the  night, 
Kellerman,  Ibrahim,  and  myself,  had  a  most 
violent  attack  of  jungle  fever  :  whose  first  intima- 
tion is  felt  in  a  benumbed  sensation,  that  crawls 
like  ice  along  the  vertebral  column,  followed  by 
violent  fever  and  utter  prostration. 

May  26th. — Ba  Beker,  who  now  has  charge  of 
my  porters,  delays  departure,  and  claims  that  he 
must  return  to  Foueira  in  order  to  bring  up  some 
porters  that  have  failed  to  arrive.  The  excuse 
is  made  simply  to  take  advantage  of  the  boun- 
teous hospitality  of  Rionga ;  and  to  drink  freely 
of  the  large  quantity  of  merissa  sent  me  every 
day. 

I  showed  them  my  Reilly  Gun,  No.  8  Elephant, 
and  established  a  reputation  and  sobriquet  of 
"El-Chadide,"  (the  great),  by  planting  an  explosive 
shell  in  the  centre  of   a   tree  a   hundred   yards 


84  CENTRAL   AFEIOA. 

distant,  the  ball  crashing  througli,  and  making  a 
clean  liole  in  its  transit.  At  night,  the  accustomed 
dance  was  given.  The  ex-king  was  surrounded 
by  Ms  Mtongoli  (ministers)  in  respectful  attitudes 
on  tlieir  knees.  At  the  feet  of  Rionga  sat  his 
chief  musician,  wbo  evoked  not  unpleasant  music 
from  a  well-made  guitar.  The  colour  of  my  hair, 
face,  and  uniform  was  a  never  ending  source  of 
remark,  and  ejaculations  of  astonishment. 

Whilst  seated  in  my  hut  the  door  was  suddenly 
darkened  by  the  figure  of  a  boy,  who  came  as 
porter  of  an  extra  jug  of  "  merissa."  "  Pinto  " 
told  me  his  name,  and  proclaimed  himself  at 
once  the  favourite  and  the  buffoon  of  Rionga 
by  his  contortions  of  face  and  witty  sayings  (he 
spoke  Arabic  from  his  constant  intercourse  with 
the  garrison);  "Pinto"  looked  askance  at  some 
red  beads  and  red  cotton  cloth  that,  as  he  said, 
"would  make  him  a  Sheik  at  once."  They 
were  given  him  unfortunately  for  my  peace  of 
mind,,  for  like  Oliver  Twist  he  begged  for  more 
incessantly. 

May  28th. — No  longer  able  to  restrain  my 
anger,  at  being  compelled  by  these  bacchanalians 
to  remain  in  this  feverish  encampment,  I  called 
Rionga  and  begged  him  to  compel  my  men  to 
march.  He  did  so,  and  soon  packages  of  food 
sewed  in  skins,  and  my  tin  cases  were  distributed 
among  the  porters  who,  as  usual,  screamed  and 
chattered  in    angry  discussion.      When   all   was 


DEPART   FOE   UGUNDA.  85 

ready  I  bade  adieu  to  Baba  Tiicka,  tlie  Adjutant- 
Major  wbo  had  accompanied  me  thus  far.  To  him 
and  Rionga  I  said,  "  If  I  come  back  at  all,  look 
for  me  by  the  river."  Rionga  replied  to  me, 
"  Impossible ;  you  can  never  return  by  the  river, 
no  one  has  ever  gone  or  can  go  to  M'Tse  by  the 
river :  the  Keba  Regas  will  prevent  you." 

Rionga  had  arrayed  himself  in  the  same  costume 
in  which  he  had  received  me ;  he  came  now  to  bid 
me  adieu,  and  whispered  to  me  in  an  undertone 
as  I  mounted  my  horse,  "  Beware  of  Ba  Beker, 
he  is  as  false  as  a  fox!"  an  admonition  that 
proved  of  service  to  me  ;  since  I  watched  him 
closely  and  checkmated  all  his  endeavours  to  ruin 
me,  when  later  he  became  jealous  of  the  influence 
I  exercised  over  King  M'Tse. 

Scarcely  had  I  left  camp  when  Ugunda  com- 
menced "  to  go  lame,"  whether  shamming  or  not, 
I  do  not  know ;  but  the  following  day  he  had 
quite  recovered  the  use  of  his  leg. 

The  country  is  flat  with  here  and  there  several 
mountains,  which  like  Pyramids  in  the  distance, 
rise  from  its  depressed  plane,  to  break  the 
monotony  of  the  scene. 

I  shall  ask  the  reader  to  go  with  me  through 
my  itinerary,  with  its  record  of  perpetual  rain, 
fever,  and  misery,  to  the  capital  at  Ugunda. 

May  29th. — "Mirabile  dictu  !"  no  rain  last  night, 
the  porters  make  every  excuse  not  to  march  to- 
day, and  I  am    therefore    compelled    to    submit. 


86  CENTEAL    AFRICA. 

The  inaction  of  camp  is  far  more  dreaded  by  me 
than  the  .fatigue  of  the  march.  During  the  day 
"  Morako,"  a  "  Mtongoli,"  Sheik  of  an  Ugunda 
province,  exasperated  with  one  of  his  men  who 
had  drunk  up  his  "  merissa,"  brutally  cut  off  both 
his  ears.  The  cries  and  screams  of  the  victim 
are  terrific,  and  rendered  hideous  by  the  inter- 
mingled jeers  of  laughter  from'liis  comrades,  who 
looked  unfeelingly  on.  The  punishment  by 
cutting  off  of  the  ears  is  a  prerogative  of  a 
minister,  or  "  Mtongoli "  of  Ugunda ;  whilst  to 
M'Tse  alone  belongs  the  power  to  put  to  death. 

May  30^/i. — We  marched  seven  hours  and  a  half 
to-day  through  rain  and  mist ;  the  water  that  we 
are  obliged  to  drink  is  execrable ;  the  spongy 
earth  quickly  absorbs  the  rain,  save  that  whicb  here 
and  there  collects  in  great  holes,  the  tramping 
ground  of  elephant  and  buffalo.  The  water  is  a 
mixture  of  their  excretions,  and  of  this,  with  tongue 
parched  with  fever,  we  are  obliged  to  drink.  Fetid 
odours  arise  from  the  black  marshy  ground,  and 
almost  asphyxiate  us  as  we  pass  over  it.  During 
the  march  Ba  Beker  sends  a  boy  reeking  with 
small  pox  to  march  near  me ;  three  times  I  had 
him  sent  to  the  rear,  but  his  return  the  third  time 
seemed  to  me  so  studied,  that  I  was  compelled 
to  lecture  Ba  Beker  severely. 

Maij  ^Ist. — Fever  of  last  night  abated  ;  en  route 
at  seven  a.m.,  and  pass  Mrooli.  The  Keba  Regas 
(Unyori)  come  out  from  their  village,  and  content 


THE    EIVER    KAFOU.  87 

themselves  witTi  savas^e  looks.  The  river  is  in 
sight  frora  here,  and  has  quite  a  lake-like 
appearance ;  at  midday  we  cross  the  river  Kafou, 
a  stream  of  three  feet  deep,  but  which  swells  later 
to  a  much  greater  depth.  It  was  hence  that,  follow- 
ing its  course  for  a  certain  distance,  Sir  Samuel 
Baker  in  his  first  expedition  went  westward  to 
the  Lake  Albert  Nyanza;  the  Kafou  being  the 
farthest  point  that  he  reached  southward. 

All  my  people  are  ill  save  Sai'd  and  myself. 
Abd-el-Rahman  has  a  fearful  attack,  whilst  later 
in  the  day  a  genuine  "  jungle  "  seized  me,  effect  of 
which  leaves  one  almost  in  a  state  of  collapse.  Ba- 
nanas have  become  our  almost  only  food,  varied  now 
and  then  with  a  potage  of  "  dourah,"  that  I  make 
myself,  since  Adam  is  perfectly  worthless,  and 
Kellerman  with  strange  perversity  will  not  aid  me. 
The  natives  and  my  porters  envelope  the  unripe 
banana  in  its  huge  leaf,  and  putting  this  in  a 
large  earthen  pot  over  the  fire,  they  are  thus 
steamed  and  rendered  palatable  to  the  savage, 
who  scarcely  ever  eat  the  ripened  fruit.  In 
Ugunda  the  fruit,  in  addition  to  this  process,  is 
both  roasted  and  dried ;  the  latter  process  being 
preparatory  to  converting  into  a  flour,  from  which 
a  very  wholesome  and  palatable  bread  is  made. 

June  1st. — The  storm  that  prevails  prevents  us 
from  marching;  we  cannot  see  the  way,  and  are 
thus  doomed  to  inaction.  The  day  is  passed  in 
administering  from  a  little  store  of  quinine  in  my 


88  CENTEAL   AFRICA. 

possession  to  rny  suffering  people.  Left  alone 
to  my  sombre  tliouglits,  witli  nothing  of  that 
exhilirating  effect  that  even  the  rigours  of  a 
campaign  sometimes  excite  in  the  bosoms  of 
those  ever  eager  to  exchange  the  haunts  of 
civilization  for  venture  in  a  savage  land — 
hard,  stern,  self-imposed  duty  was  my  only 
support  under  these  trying  circumstances.  The 
country,,  cold  and  cheerless,  forbade  me  those 
sensations  of  .  delight  and  ecstasy  that  have 
become  stereotyped  by  almost  every  traveller  in 
Africa,  who,  trusting  that  no  other  might  be  so  un- 
fortunate as  himself,  has  painted  imaginary  scenery 
that  might  vie  with  that  of  a  Claude  Melnotte. 
■The  quaint  and  uncertain  histories  of  that  great 
Arab  traveller,  Ibn  Batuta,  had  become  a  model 
for  his  successors,  anxious  thus  to  acquire  fame 
and  reputation,  where  the  naked  truth  would 
perhaps  have  been  coldly  received.  I  have  never 
seen  in  all  Africa  any  views  of  landscape  that 
,merit  notice  except  the  scenery  on  the  Lake 
Victoria  Nyanza. 

Whilst  encamped  here  my  ten  men  given  me  by 
Rionga  presented  themselves,  asking  that  I  would 
"  shoot  three  big  guns  against  the  country  of 
Unyoro  (Keba  Rega),"  with  which  their  tribe,  as 
already  noted,  is  at  constant  war.  I  did  not  at 
that  moment  feel  disposed  to  humour  them,  and 
they  left  me  sadly  disappointed.  On  the  following 
morning  they  again  presented  themselves,  repeat- 


THE    CHEIK   MORAKO.  89 

ing  the  request  of  the  day  before,  proffering  at  the 
same  time  a  present  of  Indian  corn  wrapped  in 
banana  leaves.  What  a  treasure,  and  relief  from 
my  now  unwholesome  diet  of  "  dourah "  and 
bananas !  In  the  enthusiasm  of  the  moment  I 
order  three  shots  to  be  fired  in  air  "  against  the 
country!"  which  was  received  with  the  greatest 
satisfaction.  This  was  one  of  the  greatest  feats  of 
diplomacy  I  had  ever  seen  in  Africa ;  the  stomach 
had  been  appealed  to  instead  of  the  heart,  always 
a  vulnerable  point  with  the  negro ;  he  had  applied 
the  law  to  me,  find  had  won  ! 

Day  after  day  we  march  through  rain,  bog,  and 
slime  over  the  marshy  earth.  Poor  Ugunda  groans, 
and  labours  to  extricate  himself  from  the  holes  in 
which  he  sometimes  falls.  I  am  obliged  to  dis- 
mount and  very  often  pull  him,  aided  by  my 
porters,  through  the  black,  filthy  mud.  Rain  and 
misery  by  day,  and  misery  and  rain  by  night,  with 
the  addition  of  the  chilly  atmosphere — these  may 
be  accepted  as  the  leading  incidents  of  the  route. 

The  9th  of  June  we  arrived  near  Chagamoyo, 
neutral  ground,  that  separated  Unyoro  from 
Ugunda,  "  Morako,"  the  Cheik  heretofore  'men- 
tioned, taking  with  him  my  porters  from  the 
territorial  line  into  his  oivn  country  Ugunda,  for 
the  purpose  of  making  a  raid.  On  inquiry,  I 
found  that  this  was  a  custom  on.  all  roads  passed 
over  by  a  great  Sheik  hke  "Morako,"  and  the 
people  captured  were,  by  right  of  conquest,  his 


90  CENTRAL   AFRKIA. 

slaves.  Here  was  a  feature  of  tlie  slavery  ques- 
tion I  had  not  yet  been  .brought  to  consider; 
though  afterwards  I  learned  by  experiencej  that 
the  greatest  slave-dealer  in  Central  Africa  is  the 
Sheik  of  the  tribe  himself. 

"  Moi'ako "  returned  with  three  goats,  three 
sheep,  three  dogs,  and  three  women;  they  had 
rushed,  with  some  old  flint-locks,  from  the  cover 
of  banana-trees  into  a  circular  open  space,  and 
with  fearful  yells  had  made  the  above  captures.  I 
should  have  been  inclined  to  interfere,  but  the 
women  seemed  perfectly  contented,  and  appa- 
rently accustomed  to  this  change  of  life.  My 
interference  however  in  any  positive  way  would 
have  been  as  useless  as  ill-judged.  I  was  power- 
less to  act,  for  I  was  not  quite  sure  but  that  a  worse 
fate  awaited  myself. 

The  next  day  the  10th,  the  country  changed 
for  the  better,  and  the  lowlands  of  Unyoro 
gave  place,  as  we  entered  Ugunda,  to  roads  ivcll 
sivept,  that,  *' Morako "  tells  me,  have  been 
widened  and  -  swept  by  orders  of  his  great 
master,  M'Tse,  who  had  sent  him  a  messenger, 
in  response  to  a  message  sent  by  Morako,  ap- 
])rising  him  of  the  intended  visit  of  a  great 
White  Prince,  whose  face  and  features  were  unlike 
those  of  the  Ugunda,  and  whose  strange  "  mount  " 
would  astonish  even  M'Tse.  The  uncertain  and 
difficult  mission  which  I  had  imposed  upon  myself 
led  me  (as  I  became  fully  aware  of  the  risk  I  had 


MESSAGE    TO    m'tSE.  91 

undertaken),  to  stndyto  make  up  in  diplomacy  for 
my  very  weak  position.  I  had  sent  word  by  the 
messenger  "  that  a  great  Prince  would  visit  him, 
the  great  M'Tse,  the  greatest  King  of  all  Africa  " 
(I  meant  Central  Africa).  He  was  flattered  by 
the  recognition  of  his  greatness,  whilst  it  gave  me 
a  position  to  treat  with  him,  and  secured  for  me  a 
reception  that  was  denied  Speke,  and  caused  him 
to  leave  Ugunda  with  his  plans  almost  foiled. 
(M'Tse  never  forgave  Captain  Speke  for  insisting 
upon  sitting  in  his  presence  ;  whilst  to  me  he 
accorded  a  seat  near  him,  and  caused  his  people 
to  prostrate  themselves  before  me.) 

A  certain  exhilaration  now  replaced  the  gloom 
that  had  pervaded  me.  My  lips  were  bursting 
with  fever,  and  bleeding,  either  the  effect  of  poi- 
sonous weeds,  that  sometimes  in  a  vacant  mood  I 
would  put  in  my  mouth  in  passing,  or  from  the 
fierce  rays  of  the  ^un  that  at  tinies  broke  through 
the  generally  overclouded  heavens. 

M'Tse  had  ordered  these  roads  to  be  sivcft  and 
cleared,  as  they  led  over  steep  ascents.  The  red 
clay  soil  marked  their  direction  for  miles  through 
a  grass-covered  country,  or  climbing  the  sides  of 
mountains,  were  lost  to  view  in  the  misty. atmo- 
sphere. At  the  base  of  these  mountains  run 
treacherous  muddy  streams,  almost  impassable, 
through  which  my  horse  reared  and  plunged,  and 
which  often  obliged  me  to  dismount.  I  have  been 
forced  to  flounder  waist  deep  in  the  disgusting 


92  CENTEAL   AFRICA. 

putrid  mud,  and  to  wash  off  tlie  paste  from  ray 
person  and  my  liorse,  whilst  waiting  the  tardy 
passage  of  the  porters.  The  water  that  we  drank 
here  was  execrable,  and  of  the  same  character  as 
that  already  referred  to.  We  bivouacked  at  four 
o'clock  in  a  banana  grove,  in  the  midst  of  which, 
as  usual,  were  now  to  be  seen  the  neat  straw  huts, 
divided  into  compartments,  that  distinguish  in 
their  cleanness  the  habitations  of  the  Ugunda. 
The  inhabitants  fled  on  the  approach  of  their 
own  people  —  a  cause  of  congratulation  in  this 
case,  as  I  was  only  too  glad  to  exchange  the 
nominal  shelter  of  my  tent  for  the  comfortable 
Ugunda  hut. 

Jime  11th. — The  arrival  of  the  Grand  Kahotah 
(Minister  of  Foreign  Affairs),  was  announced  by  a 
rush  of  his  guard,  who  with  drum  and  horns  made 
a  deafening  noise.  He  encamped  near  me  in  the 
banana  forest.  He  has  brought  me  twenty  cows 
(the  cows  were  not  given  me,  but  were  kept  by 
the  Kahotah),  bananas,  and  tobacco;  and  an  invi- 
tation to  come  at  once  to  Ugunda,  and  instruc- 
tions were  given  to  his  messengers  not  to  let  the 
White  Prince,  "  Mbuguru,"  tread  upon  grass  :  that 
is  to  say,  to  make  me  follow  the  road  that  he  had 
caused  to  be  made  for  my  reception. 

African  diplomacy  willed  it  that  I  should 
remain  encamped  for  several  days,  nntil  the  king 
should  prepare  a  *'  Zeriba,"  —  enclosed  huts 
for  myself  and  staff — and  also  have  reported  to 


TEEACHERY   OP    IBRAHIM.  93 

him  whatever  he  might  want  to  know  of  me  in 
advance.  The  "  Kahotah "  was  a  man  of  great 
importance  with  M'Tse;  besides  preparing  for 
M'Tse  pohtical  dishes,  he  was  also  his  cook, 
and  alone  prepared  the  food  that  M'Tse  always 
ate  alone.  This  chief  then  gave  himself  all  the 
airs  of  a  man  clothed  in  a  little  brief  autho- 
rity. His  first  message  to  me  was,  that  *'he 
would  receive  my  visit  at  his  hut."  Here  was 
a  quandary ;  for  to  accede  was  to  acknowledge 
his  superiority.  I  said  simply  to  his  mes- 
senger (Selim  acting  as  interpreter),  that  I  came 
to  see  M'Tse,  and  not  the  Kahotah.  This  seemed 
to  solve  the  difl&culty,  since  he  sent  me  word 
that  he  would  come ;  but  the  proud  fellow  never 
did,  and  though  he  escorted  me  to  Ugunda 
we  never  met,  but  sent  daily  reciprocal  saluta- 
tions. Could  anything  have  been  more  diplomatic  ? 
The  faithful  minister  had  doubtless  orders  that 
my  first  interview  should  be  with  the  king. 

My  dragoman  Ibrahim,  however,  paid  frequent 
visits  to  the  "Kahotah,"  whose  representations 
of  M'Tse  and  his  court  bred  in  the  wily  Ibrahim 
a  desire  to  be  a  great  man  also.  The  stories  of 
great  quantities  of  ivory  incited  his  cupidity,  and 
the  natural  hypocrisy  and  deceit  of  the  man 
induced  him  to  conspire  against  me.  He  assumed 
the  role  of  "  fike,"  or  priest,  and  so  wofi  upon 
the   Kahotah,  that  he  finally  believed   the  most 

monstrous  lies  :  that  "  I  was  going  to  see  M'Tse, 

H 


94  CENTRAL   AFIUCA. 

and  that  my  intention  was  to  take  the  conntry 
and  supplant  him  as  king;  and  other  insinua- 
tions tending  to  prevent  my  being  permitted  to 
enter  the  capital.  The  faithful  devotion  of  Sai'd 
and  Abd-el-Rahman,  however,  frustrated  the 
intrigues  of  Ibrahim.  I  arrested  him  on  this  and 
other  charges,  that  made  his  continuance  with  me 
impossible,  and  therefore  called  upon  the  Sheik, 
"  Morako,"  for  men  to  send  him  to  Foueira. 
By  presents  I  induced  him  to  give  me  the 
guard  for  the  moment,  leaving  him  under  sur- 
veillance at  the  Zeriba  of  Morako,  near  by,  until  I 
could  ask  M'Tse  for  a  guard  to  send  "  an  unfaith- 
ful servant  back  to  Foueira  " — this  was  afterwards 
granted,  and  M'Tse  made  the  detail  himself — 
Ibrahim  was  returned  safely  in  arrest.  This 
was  a  serious  blow  to  me ;  for  I  depended  very 
much  upon  this  fellow  as  an  interpreter  and 
writer,  for  at  that  time  I  spoke  but  little  Arabic ; 
I  was,  however,  favoured  by  a  fortuitous  circum- 
stance, for  M'Tse  had  with  him  a  dragoman 
named  "  Ide,"  who  served  me  in  his  stead. 
Absolute  necessity  compelled  me  to  speak  Arabic, 
and  I  did  so  finally  with  great  success. 

The  rigours  of  the  climate  may  be  imagined 
when  Said,  the  last  to  succumb,  has  finally  fallen 
a  victim  to  the  fever.  Born  in  the  malarious 
districts  of  the  Bahr-el-Abiad,  I  considered  him 
proof  against  fever.  On  the  morning  of  the  18th 
of  June  we  again  resumed  the  route.     M'Tse  had 


beautiful'  view  op  ugunda.  95 

finally  sent  permission j  and  ordered  that  I  should 
be  pushed  on  with  all  haste.  Through  jungle, 
mud,  and  banana  grove,  we  pushed  our  way 
followed  by  the  Kahotah,  with  great  tooting  of 
horns  and  incessant  beating  of  drums ;  the  road, 
of  course,  losing  itself  in  these  difficult  passes. 
After  a  long  march,  however,  we  came  upon  a 
much  finer  country,  where  the  roads  were  at  least 
twenty-five  feet  wide,  and  well  kept.  We  ascend 
a  steep  hill^  and  from  its  height  the  beautiful 
panorama  of  Ugunda  unfolds  itself  to  view, 
spreading  itself  towards  the  Lake  Victoria,  over 
which  hung  a  misty  veil  of  vapour.  The  country, 
cut  into  hill  and  dale  by  its  countless,  almost 
continuous  banana  forests  was,  by  comparison,  a 
scene  that  well-nigh  seduced  me  into  enthusiasm ; 
for  I  felt  I  was  standing  upon  the  threshold  of  the 
mysterious  region  that  enveloped  Ugunda  and 
the  Lake  Victoria. 

The  19th  of  June  we  left  camp  ;  the  route  lay 
over  a  rolling  country  flanked  by  the  mountains 
of  "  Yohomah."  We  arrived  at  Gebel  Bimbah  at 
nine  a.m.,  whence  we  continued  the  route  till 
mid-day,  when  we  bivouacked.  In  a  deserted 
cabin,  my  men  found  and  brought  me  a  quantity 
of  pea-nuts  of  same  kind  as  those  which  grow  so 
abundantly  in  California.  We  found  plantains 
large  and  dehcious  here  for  the  first  time. 

On  the  morning  of  the  20th  of  June  the  column 
was  in  motion,  preceded  by  the  "  Kahotah  "  at  the 


96 


CENTRAL    AFRICA. 


head  of  a  mass  of  men,  whose  numbers  had  now 
swollen  to  about  4000. 

The  Ugunda  flag  consists  of  a  white  ground  of 
twelve  inches  wide  from  the  staff,  thirty-six  inches 
red,  bordered  with  three  pendant  stripes  of  monkey 
skin  of  long  hair  common  to  the  country.  It  is  a 
significant  fact  that  this  is  the  only  people  I  had, 
or  have  since  visited  in  Africa,  who  have  a  flag. 


FLAG   OF   UGUNDA. 


The  flag  of  Ugunda  was   carried  at  the  head  of 
the  column,  side  by  side  with  the  Egyptian  flag. 


THE    BODY-GUARDS    OF    m'tSE.  97 

Horns  and  drums  kept  up  a  deafening  noise ;  tiie 
latter  instrument  being  accompanied  by  a  vocal 
imitation  of  the  crow.  These  people,  armed  with 
lances,  formed  in  solid  column  of  forty  to  fifty 
front,  the  roads  here  permitting  this  formation ; 
whilst  on  each  side  skirmishers  dressed  in  a  fantas- 
tic uniform,  with  fez  of  flannel  ornamented  with 
black  feathers,  performed  the  most  remarkable  evo- 
lutions, whilst  firing  the  uncertain  firelocks  with 
which  they  were  armed,  with  reckless  disregard  of 
aim.  These  were  the  body-guards  of  M'Tse,  and 
had  this  curious  privilege.  On  each  side  of  the 
column  marched  a  numerous  body  of  men,  wholly 
dressed  in  plantainleaves  curiously  arranged  around 
the  body,  who  with  grimace  and  wild  gesticulation 
kept  time  in  dance  and  shouts  to  the  accompany- 
ing music.  A  curious  throng  of  young  girls  peered 
out  with  startled  gaze  from  the  great  banana  forests 
through  which  the  cortege  passed ;  or  fled  with 
gazelle  fleetness  at  the  sight  of  man  and  horse  ! 
It  was  a  proud  day  for  Said,  Abd-el-Rahman,  and 
Selim,  as  they  marched  in  front  of  me,  dressed 
in  their  gay  uniform  kept  for  the  occasion. 
"  Ugunda,"  too,  seemed  proud  of  the  distinction 
of  beinsr  the  first  horse  that  had  ever  visited 
Central  Africa ;  and  who,  through  every  season, 
had  defied  the  reputed,  redoubted  Tetse  fly.  His 
diet  of  bananas  had  in  no  way  depreciated 
his  appearance;  though  its  effect  upon  me  was 
beginning  to  tell  fearfully  upon  my  health  and 


98  CENTRAL    AFRICA. 

strength,  in  the  fearful  derangement  of  the 
stomach  from  which  I  was  now  a  constant  sufferer. 
The  column  halted  for  a  moment  on  a  wide 
plaza,  cleanly  swept;  a  high  palisade  enclosed 
numerous  well-built  huts  :  whilst  at  the  great 
portal  a  mass  of  women  were  collected.  This 
was  the  residence  of  the  Queen-Mother,  the  widow 
of  the  deceased  king  Suna,  the  father  of  M'Tse.  A 
nicely-dressed  slave  in  breathless  haste  came  run- 
ning from  the  gate,  and  throwing  himself  prostrate 
at  my  feet,  presented  me  her  royal  and  gracious 
salutation  and  welcome  to  Ugunda.  My  soldier 
Selim  interpreted  him  my  thanks  and  salutations ; 
and  the  column  moved  on  over  hill  and  ravine, 
and  through  sloughs  and  bogs  that,  strange  to  say, 
characterize  every  descent  of  elevated  ground, 
until  ascending  a  high  hill,  I  stood  facing  an  eleva- 
tion not  500  yards  away,  the  palace  of  M'Tse, 
King  of  Ugunda !  I  forgot  for  the  moment  the 
physical  pain  to  which  I  was  a  victim,  in  the 
strange  coup-d'ceil  that  presented  itself  to  my 
view.  A  succession  of  hills,  covered  with  banana 
groves,  rolled  away  and  lost  themselves  in  the 
vapours,  which  seemed  to  hold  in  mystery  the 
Lake  Victoria,  and  the  unknown  Nile.  On  every 
hillside  thousands  of  people  were  gathered:  whilst 
directly  in  front  of  me,  at  the  outer  gate  of  the 
palace,  stood  M'Tse  himself,  surrounded  by  a  great 
throng  of  men  and  women.  For  a  long  distance 
a  mass  of  men  struggling  to  catch  sight  of  the 


THE  king's  executioners.  99 

"Mbugiiru; "  in  tlie  immediate  vicinity  of  my  person 
the  natives  had  prostrated  themselves  ;  whilst  still 
mounted  I  surveyed  the  novel  scene.  Soon  with 
lightning  speed  several  messengers  (Marsalah)  come 
running  towards  me,  and  throwing  themselves  at 
my  feet,  conveyed  to  me  the  welcome  of  their  king. 
Selim  thanked  them  in  my  name,  and  they  hasten 
back.  These  men  merit  description  here.  Chosen 
for  their  ferocious  appearance,  there  is  the  wild  glare 
of  brutality  in  their  gleaming  eyes,  and  a  long  black 
beard  proclaimed  them  of  other  origin  than  the 
Ugundi,  undoubtedly  Malay.  Their  dress  consists 
of  a  pantaloon  of  red  and  black  flannel,  bordered 
with  black :  a  tunic  of  red  flannel  with  black  stripes, 
dolman-like  across  the  breast,  from  which  hangs 
a  fringe  of  a  peculiar  monkey  skin ;  a  red  cloth 
turban,  around  which  is  wound  in  tasteful  coils  a 
finely  plaited  rope-cord,  badge  and  instrument  of 
their  deadly  office :  for  they  are  the  hourreaux  at 
the  court,  executioners  of  M'Ts^'s  undisputed 
will !  M'Tse  sends  his  messengers  to  ask  that  I 
will  approach,  that  he  may  see  the  animal  on 
which  I  am  mounted.  Only  for  a  moment  I  felt  a 
sense  of  repulsion  to  all  this  show ;  but  I  was  no 
lonsfer  free  to  risk  what  had  cost  me  so  much 
suffering,  the  sympathy  and  confidence  of  the 
king.  Gathering  the  reins  in  my  hand,  I  drove 
my  spurs  into  the  flanks  of  Ugunda,  and  sped 
down  the  hill  with  fearful  speed,  amid  the  yells  of 
delight  of  the  assembled  throng.     An  instant  the 


100  CENTEAL    AFRICA. 

horse  slipped  and  stumbled  in  a  depression  of 
the  uneven  road  ;  quickly  recovering  however,  I 
rode  towards  M'Tse  and  his  hareem,  who  broke  in 
flight  with  cries  and  screams  of  fright.  Returning 
I  regained  the  hill,  welcomed  by  the  excited  crowd 
in  loud  and  hoarse  shouts.  In  the  act  of  dis- 
mounting afrightened  rush  and  trample  of  men  took 
place ;  they  had  thought  me  till  now  a  Centaur ! 

The  Mtongoli  detailed  to  my  service  conducted 
me  to  my  Zeriba,  built  expressly  for  me  on  the 
side  of  the  hill,  but  a  few  paces  from  my  halting- 
place.  Enclosed  by  a  high  palisade  with  an 
interior  wall,  my  hut  in  front  of  the  interior  gate 
was  of  a  form  approaching  a  house  with  an  open 
front ;  behind  which  and  joined  thereto  was  my 
sleeping-chamber,  a  shed  with  door  that  con- 
nected with  other  buildings  occupied  by  my  suite. 
Fifty-eight  days  passed  in  travel  between  Gon- 
dokoro  and  the  Lake,  delays  included,  with  thirty- 
one  days  of  actual  march :  and  165  hours  at 
four  kilometres  the  hour  had  been  accomplished : 
the  five  degrees  of  latitude  separating  Gondokoro 
from  Ugunda  had  been  made,  a  distance  of  660  kilo- 
metres, by  reason  of  the  serpentine  and  difficult  way. 

Sick  and  fatigued  I  sought  my  hammock  at  an 
early  hour,  and  slept  soundly  despite  the  myriads 
of  mosquitoes  that  here  rendered  life  almost  insup- 
portable ;  and  the  incessant  noise  of  drums  and 
horns  that  composed  the  royal  band,  that  had  come 
by  orders  of  the  king  to  honour  thus  my  presence. 


CHAPTER   IX. 

Receive  a  Messenger  from  M'Tse — I  set  out  and  enter  within 
the  Palace— Met  by  M'Tse — Interview  with  M'Tse  seated 
on  his  Throne — His  Ministers  make  their  reports — The 
Kahotah  seriously  compromised,  saved  by  my  excuse — I 
address  the  King  in  Arabic — Dreadful  sacrifice  of  Thirty 
victims  in  honour  of  my  visit — Unjust  imputations  of 
Livingstone  on  Speke — The  interview  finished,  M'Tse 
shows  me  his  Hareem — I  return  to  my  Zeriba — Sufferings 
from  Cold  and  want  of  Fuel. 

The  morning  of  the  21st  of  June  broke  with  a 
cloudless  sky;  at  eight  o'clock  the  heat  had 
become  excessive.  A  "marsalah"  (messenger) 
arrived  to  beg  me,  in  the  name  of  M'Tse,  to  visit 
him  at  once.  I  immediately  donned  my  uniform, 
then  similar  to  that  worn  by  the  officers  of  Les 
Chasseurs  d'Afrique,  in  France.  The  gold  lace 
and  ornaments  upon  tunic  and  red  pantaloosn,  had 
fortunately  escaped  injury  from  the  rains  and  damp. 
In  this,  in  the  language  of  our  English  friends, 
I  would  be  considered  by  the  natives  as  a  "  howling 
Swell,"  and  would  astonish  the  Court  circle. 
At  the  door  stood  my  horse  Ugunda,  attended  by 
Selim,  now    become    my  interpreter;  Said    and 


102  CENTRAL   AFRICA. 

Abd-el-Rahman,  in  red  shirts  and  white  pan- 
taloons, the  uniform  of  the  "  Forty  Thieves." 
At  the  entrance  of  the  gate  the  Ugunda  and 
Egyptian  flags  had  been  planted  in  the  ground, 
whilst  thousands  struggled  for  a  place  to  catch  a 
glimpse  of  the  royal  (!)  guest  of  their  great  king. 
Ba  Beker  was  with  me,  within  the  tent,  as  my 
aide  and  interpreter  with  the  court.  Followed 
by  them,  my  appearance  as  I  mounted  my  horse 
was  greeted  by  shouts  of  enthusiasm,  that  were 
re-echoed  by  the  distant  hills  now  covered  with 
human  beings.  At  the  head  of  this  immense 
cortege,  preceded  by  banners  and  music,  and  the 
Kongowee  (General-in-Chief  of  the  army),  I 
proceeded  to  the  palace  situated  on  the  opposite 
hill,  in  the  centre  of  an  amphitheatre  formed  by 
seven  high  walls  or  palisades,  through  which 
entrance  is  had  by  opposing  gates  to  which  cow- 
bells are  attached ;  the  interval  of  twenty  yards 
between  the  walls  being  occupied  by  huts  of  the 
ministers  and  courtiers.  Through  these  I  made 
my  way  followed  only  by  a  favoured  few ;  at  each 
gate  an  invisible  hand  rang  wildly  these  bells, 
and  the  detached  gates  slid  from  view,  giving 
entrance.  Passing  the  seventh  gate  I  found 
myself  in  front  of  a  large  pyramid-shaped  hut 
supported  by  a  corridor  of  columns  within. 

From  within  a  man  of  majestic  mien  approached 
the  entrance;  this  was  M'Tse.  He  appears 
scarcely  iliii'ty-five  years  of  age ;  certainly  more 


INTERVIEW    WITH    m'tSE.  103 

than  six  feet  high. ;  his  face  is  nervous  but  expres- 
sive of  intelligence.  From  his  large  restless  eye, 
a  gleam  of  fierce  brutality  beams  out  that  mars 
an  otherwise  sympathetic  expression  ;  his  features 
are  regular,  and  complexion  a  light  copper  tint. 
He  is  dressed  in  a  long  cloak,  common  in  fashion 
to  that  worn  by  the  better  class  of  Arab  merchants. 
The  texture  is  of  blue  cloth,  trimmed  with  gold ; 
around  his  head,  in  graceful  folds,  is  wound  a 
white  turban;  his  waist  encircled  by  a  belt  in 
gold,  richly  wrought,  from  which  is  suspended  a 
Turkish  scimitar ;  his  feet  are  encased  in  sandals 
of  Moorish  pattern,  procured  from  Zanzibar.  He 
advanced  to  meet  me,  with  a  graceful  salutation, 
as  I  dismounted  from  "Ugunda,"  to  whom  alter- 
nately his  eyes  wandered  with  almost  an  expres- 
sion of  fear,  that  gave  me  the  impression  that  he 
regarded  me  as  fresh  from  the  Inferno. 

The  din  and  noise  from  horn  and  drum  now 
became  deafening  as,  leaving  Ugunda  to  Selim, 
I  passed  within  the  open  front  of  the  palace,  and 
followed  the  king,  who  retrograded  to  his  royal  seat 
at  the  end  of  the  corridor.  A  chair,  over  which  was 
thrown  a  cloth  wrought  in  gold,  formed  the  royal 
throne.  Seated,  M'Tse  placed  his  feet  upon  a 
pillow,  near  which  was  a  beautifully  polished 
ivory  tusk  of  milky  whiteness,  as  if  to  say,  "  In 
hoc  signo  regno.'^  When  I  had  taken  the  seat  as- 
signed me  by  the  king,  a  few  moments  of  awkward 
silence  ensued,  of  which  I  profited  by  turning  to 


104  CENTRAL    AFRICA. 

take  in  the  particulars  of  this  strangest  of 
all  receptions.  At  each  pillar  along  the  cor- 
ridor leading  from  the  door  stood  the  execu- 
tioners, of  whom  I  have  already  spoken.  The 
fierce  gleam  of  savagery  that  shone  from  their 
eyes,  now  fastened  upon  me,  caused  me  just  one 
little  moment  of  uneasiness,  as  I  turned  to  regard 
the  Mtongoli,  that,  dressed  in  white  cotton  (only 
members  of  the  court  may  dress  in  white),  lined 
each  side  of  this  apparent  "  Hall  of  Justice,"  a 
large  room  whose  sides  and  ceiling  were  covered 
with  a  cotton  cloth,  and  distinctly  marked,  as  I 
gazed  upwards,  "  Wachusetts  Mills  !  "  bought 
at  Zanzibar  from  the  *'  Meri-kani."  M'Tse  has  sent 
from  time  to  time  caravans  of  ivory  to  Zanzibar 
in  exchange  for  cottons,  copper  wire,  and  shells, 
which  represent  now  the  money  of  the  country. 
But  these  expeditions  have  ceased. 

To  sit  in  presence  of  the  king  was  an  honour 
never  before  accorded  to  mortal :  it  may  not  seem 
strange  then,  that  prostrate  forms  looked  up  at 
me  with  something  akin  to  that  awe  and  fear  that 
hedged  around  M'Tse.  As  if  to  impress  me  with 
his  importance,  (and  not  in  vain),  his  ministers 
were  called  in  audience  to  render  reports  that 
concerned  their  several  missions.  The  "  Kon- 
gowee"  (General-in-Chief),  throwing  himself 
prone  upon  his  face,  cried  aloud,  with  hands 
clasped  and  raised  alternately,  "  Yanzig !  yanzig ! 
yanzig !  "   the  common  salutation  of  the  Ugunda 


KAHOTAH    SERIOUSLY   COMPEOMISED.  105 

when  addressing  a  superior.  It  was  interpreted 
to  me,  that  he  had  successfully  escorted  me  to  the 
palace,  to  the  honour  and  dignity  of  the  TJgunda 
army.  The  second  minister  called  was  "  Kahotah." 
who  had  diplomatically  declined  the  honour  of 
seeing  me  before  M'Tse  (court  intrigue),  and  who 
diplomatically  also,  had  said  nothing  of  his 
failure  to  present  me  the  twenty  cows,  which  he 
was  charged  to  offer  me.  "  Kahotah,"  however, 
had  not  been  a  courtier  long ;  or  he  might  have 
known  that  envy  and  malice  would  soon  divulge 
to  M'Tse  his  secret  and  treachery.  Ba  Beker 
had  long  looked  with  jealous  eye  upon  this  head- 
cook  in  cabinet  and  kitchen  of  M'Tse ;  he  there- 
fore told  M'Tse  of  the  failure  of  "Kahotah" 
to  visit  me,  and  of  his  appropriation  of  the  cows. 
The  question  became  serious,  and  Kahotah  came 
near  losing  his  head.  Appealed  to  by  M'Tse  him- 
self, I  excused  on  account  of  my  illness  the  non- 
reception  of  Kahotah,  who  was  therefore  saved 
a  humiliating  and  disagreeable  decapitation.  An- 
other minister  was  called,  who  had  accompanied 
Ba  Beker,  and  had  been  violently  ill  en  route.  I 
gave  him  the  last  dose  of  medicine  I  possessed, 
and  succeeded  in  relieving  his  pain.  He  recounted 
to  M'Tse  my  wonderful  art  as  a  medicine  man;  an 
unfortunate  reputation,  since  M'Tse  never  ceased 
to  worry  me  for  medicine  (dower)  during  my 
stay  in  his  kingdom ;  in  despite  of  my  protestations 
that  I  had  none,  and  that  I  was  ill  myself. 


106  CENTEAL   AFKIOA. 

Ba  Beker  was  now  asked  as  to  myself,  the 
object  of  my  mission,  and  what  I  tbouglit  of  M'Tse ! 
Ba  Beker  interpreted  to  him,  though  he  understood 
me  perfectly.     I  spoke  in  Arabic,  as  follows  : — 

"0  M'Tse,  great  king  of  Africa,  1  have  come 
in  the  name  of  the  great  Sultan  at  Cairo  to  present 
you  his  gracious  salutations.  The  world  has  heard 
of  a  great  African  king,  and  my  August  Sovereign 
in  sending  me  to  him,  wishes  me  thus  to  express 
his  kindly  friendship  and  interest  for  one,  for  whom 
he  wishes  only  continued  health  and  greatness." 

This  was  received  with  expressions  of  delight, 
and  by  M'Tse  smilingly.  "Kurungi!  kurungi!" 
"Good  !  good  !"  resounded  from  all  sides  :  whilst 
they  all  rushed  forward  with  wild  gesticulation  and 
apparent  menace,  with  neatly  carved  club-sticks, 
they  screamed  and  danced  in  a  mimicry  of  hostile 
attack  against  M'Tse,  crying  "Yanzig!  yanzig  ! 
yanzig!"  which  meant  that  they  thanked  M'Tse 
for  bringing  so  powerful  a  prince  to  Ugunda ! 

M'Tse  suddenly  rose  from  his  seat;  a  slight 
but  significant  contraction  of  the  eye  had 
caused  the  disappearance  of  the  "marsalah," 
who  quick  to  do  their  master's  will,  snatched 
from  their  turbans  the  plaited  cord,  and 
seizing  their  unresisting  victims,  to  the  num- 
ber of  thirty,  amid  howls  and  fearful  yells, 
crowned  in  blood  the  signal  honour  of  the  white 
man's  visit  to  M'Tse.  It  required  no  common 
effort   for    me    to    repress    my   feelings   at   this 


a    5 


IMPUTATIONS   OP   LIVINGSTONE    ON    SFEKE.         107 

moment,  or  to  assume  the  careless  air  that  con- 
cealed what  was  going  on  within  :  for  all  eyes  were 
watchiug  me  intently,  and  a  sign  of  feeling  would, 
if  nothing  more  serious,  have  subjected  me  to 
ridicule  and  loss  of  prestige.  Singular  contra- 
dictory combination  in  the  negro,  that  cowardly 
himself,  he  most  admires  coolness  in  others. 

To  protest  would  have  been  as  useless  on  my 
part  as  impolitic.  This  was  a  custom  common  to 
all  African  potentates;  a  prerogative  that  went 
with  the  claim  to  African  greatness.  A  protest 
from  me  would  perhaps  have  consigned  me  to  a 
like  fate  :  and  though  impracticable  philanthropists 
would  have  advised  my  throwing  myself  into  the 
"  bloody  chasm,"  I  confess  to  a  certain  selfish 
congratulation,  that  neither  myself  nor  my  soldiers 
had  been  included  in  the  sacrifice.  Captain  Speke 
had  recorded  this  propensity,  in  his  voyage  through 
Ugunda.  It  has  fallen  to  me  to  vindicate  the  me- 
mory of  this  gallant  voyager  from  the  imputations 
cast  upon  him  by  Dr.  Livingstone :  who,  only  a  few 
months  before,  from  Lake  Bageolowe  had  written 
to  Stanley:  "  I  wish  some  one  would  visit  M'Tse, 
"  or  Ugunda,  without  Bombay  as  interpreter;  he  is 
"  by  no  means  good  authority.  The  King  of  Uaho- 
"  mey  suffered  eclipse  after  a  common  sense 
"  visitor,  and  we  seldom  hear  any  more  of  his  atro- 
"  cities.  The  mightiest  African  potentate,  and  the 
"  most  dreadfal  cruelties  told  of  Africa,  owe  a  vast 
"  deal  to  the  teller."     As  if  to  refute  the  apprecia- 


108  CENTRAL   AFRICA. 

tion  of  the  negro  character,  here  strangely  ennobled 
bj  the  honoured  Livingstone,  Stanley  was  at  that 
moment  reporting  in  the  Ashantee  Expedition  the 
"  bloody  facts"  at  Coomassie;  the  details  of  which 
cause  the  very  heart  to  sicken  and  recoil. 

I  cite  these  facts  in  the  interest  of  truth  alone, 
yielding  to  none  in  the  desire  to  ameliorate  the 
condition  of  the  African.  But  in  heaven's  name, 
let  those  whose  province  it  is  to  be  the  pioneers  in 
the  work,  speak  of  him  as  he  is,  without  regard  to 
those  who  attribute  to  him  virtues  and  ideas,  that, 
if  possessed,  would  render  him  no  longer  a  subject 
for  our  commiseration  and  sympathy. 

The  interview  had  now  finished,  and  the  drums 
and  horns  were  silent :  the  bloody  deed  had  been 
done,  and  sickened  and  oppressed  I  arose  to  go. 
M'Tse  followed  me  to  the  door,  where  I  was  met 
by  the  anxious  faces  of  my  soldiers  Sai'd,  Abd-el- 
Rahman,  and  Selim,  who  accompanied  me  at  the 
bidding  of  M'Tse  to  a  garden  on  the  left  in  order 
that  he  might  show  me  his  hareem,  more  than 
100  very  pretty  women,  clothed  in  the  same  simple 
and  tasteful  garment  common  to  both  sexes.  They 
surrounded  me,  examined  carefully  the  gilt  trim- 
mings of  my  uniform,  and  laughed  in  astonish- 
ment at  my  hair,  as  I  lifted  my  tarbouche  from  my 
heated  head.  When  no  longer  seated  upon  his 
throne  M'Tse  is  very  gay,  and  laughs  with  a 
freedom  that  soon  convinced  me  we  should  be 
great  friends.     We  strolled  through  the  numerous 


THE    HAREEM    OF   m'tSE.  109 

nicely  constructed  liuts,  shaded  by  the  ubiquitous 
banana  trees,  followed  by  the  whole  of  his  hareem, 
by  whom  he  is  greatly  beloved ;  as  indeed  he  is  by 
the  whole  people,  who,  as  time  wore  on  I  found 
to  be,  as  a  general  rule,  a  lying,  miserable  set,  who, 
although  certain  of  being  put  to  death,  would 
sometimes  defy  his  authority.  During  the  walk 
he  had  brought  to  me  a  pretty  boy  of  about  twelve 
years  of  age,  perfectly  white.  I  did  not  for  the 
moment,  thus  taken  unawares,  think  of  the  Albinos 
that  have  been  heretofore  recorded  as  indigenous 
among  some  African  people ;  and  consequently  I 
looked  very  much  surprised.  No  less  so  did  the 
boy,  who  looked  in  wonder  and  seemed  pleased  to 
meet  with  one  whose  colour  approached  his  own. 
His  hair  was  rather  the  crisp  wool  of  the  negro 
but  perfectly  white  ;  his  eyes  were  blue  ;  his  skin 
of  a  delicate  white  tint.  M'Tse  offered  to  give 
him  to  me,  but  I  refused  to  take  him  at  the  mo- 
ment, and  forgot  to  do  so  at  the  time  of  my  de- 
parture from  Ugunda. 

From  this  hill  the  road  winds  around  its  base, 
three  hours  to  Murchison  Creek,  over  a  beautiful 
and  picturesque  country  of  banana  groves  ;  in  the 
distance  a  small  creek  may  be  seen,  like  a  silver 
stream  winding  through  the  country  northward, 
here  called  "  Bahr  Rionga."  The  sun  was  now  sink- 
ing behind  the  mountains, as,  conducted  to  the  gate, 
having  made  the  detour  of  his  garden,  I  mounted 
my  horse  to  ride  away.     He  seemed  greatly  de- 


110  CENTRAL    AFRICA. 

lighted  at  tlie  sight,  and  begged  me  to  show  him 
how  fast  he  could  go.  Nothing  loth  to  quit  his 
presence,  I  gave  the  reins  to  "  Ugunda,"  and 
quickly  regained  the  open  road,  followed  by  my 
suite,  who  arrived  soon  after  at  the  Zeriba,  anxious 
to  exchange  impressions  at  the  unexpected  cha- 
racter of  the  reception  with  which,  we  had  b^en 
honoured.  Ba  Beker  declared  that,  next  to  M'Tse, 
I  was  considered  the  greatest  man  in  Ugunda. 
Strange  to  say,  my  audience  were  of  one  accord  as 
to  the  greatness  of  the  "  Sultan  Kam  M'Tse,"  as 
they  called  him ;  whilst  the  execution  was  referred 
to  only  in  its  detail. 

The  conversation  was  interrupted  by  the  arrival 
of  presents  from  the  king ;  very  timely,  for  I  had 
absolutely  nothing  to  give  my  men.  There  w,ere 
fifty-six  bundles  of  bananas,  twenty  earthen  jars, 
three  packets  of  large  sugar-cane,  two  packets  of 
salt,  twenty  goats,  and  fifty  cows.  The  latter 
were  a  very  fine  stock,  and  resembled  in  appear- 
ance the  Durham  short-horn  of  England ;  whilst 
among  them  were  also  very  long-horned,  large, 
and  beautifully-shaped  beasts ;  and  my  Zeriba  soon 
resembled  a  well-stocked  farm -yard. 

In  my  suite  Ba  Beker  had,  unknown  to  me, 
brought  from  the  post  at  Foueira  ten  Dongolowee, 
whom  he  proposed  to  present  as  the  body-guard 
of  M'Tse.  Ba  Beker  established  himself  with 
these  men  in  my  Zeriba,  until  their  drunken  orgies 
became  so  insupportable,  that,  pistol  in  hand,  I 


COLD   AND   SCAKCITY   OF   FUEL.  Ill 

drove  the  whole  of  them  out,  and  was  no  longer 
annoyed  by  them. 

On  each  side  of  my  hut  was  that  of  Kellerman 
and  Adam ;  Uganda  and  Selim  occupied  another  : 
whilst  Said  and  Abd-el-Rahman  were  assigned  one 
very  near  my  door.  The  front  room  was  very 
nicely  built,  and  served  me  for  a  divan.  The 
nights  were  very  cold  and  wet,  and  ill  almost 
incessantly,  I  was  obliged  to  keep  a  fire  burning 
at  night,  kept  alive  either  by  Said  or  Abd-el  by 
turns.  Wood  is  very  scarce  in  Uganda,  and  my 
ten  men  given  me  by  Rionga  proved  invaluable  in 
searching  for  it ;  otherwise  we  should  have  suffered 
severely  from  cold.  My  tent  served  to  close  the 
wide  portal  by  hanging  it  across  :  whilst  my  ham- 
mock swung  across  the  wide  room,  in  the  centre 
of  which  a  fire  was  kept  constantly  burning. 
How  often  memory  reverts  to  this  scene,  when 
lying  ill  and  helpless,  hope  of  ever  returning  to 
Gondokoro  seemed  like  some  wild  dream. 


CHAPTER    X. 

Presents  for  M'Tse — He  is  delighted  with  the  Electric  Battery 
— My  desire  to  visit  the  Lake  granted,  but  my  return  by 
the  River  refused — His  dread  of  Keba  Rega — Human 
Sacrifices — Illness  of  myself  and  Staff — The  Ugunda 
language — Ibn  Batutah — The  Negro  race — M'Tse's  Arab 
MS. — Invited  to  the  Palace — Anxieties  of  my  Staff  on  my 
proposal  to  return  by  the  River — I  suffer  from  Delirium 
— Ba  Beker  becomes  my  bitter  enemy — Ugunda :  features 
of  the  country;  its  products;  its  industry,  trade,  &c. — 
Its  Government,  arms,  population — Its  Salutations — On 
slightly  recovering  I  am  invited  to  the  Palace — On  my 
arrival  another  Sacrifice  takes  place,  the  price  of  his 
granting  my  request — Apprehensions  of  Said  and  Abd-el 
— At  M'Tse's  request  I  put  them  through  the  Manual 
Exercise — I  take  leave  of  M'Tse  and  prepare  to  start  for 
the  Lake  Victoria  Nyanza — Delayed  by  Illness — News  of 
Lieutenant  Cameron. 

The  etiquette  of  Court  in  Ugunda  prescribes  that 
presents  should  always  follow  a  visit,  but  mucli 
haste  in  such  matters  is  considered  decidedly 
vulgar.  An  exception  to  this  rule  was  made  for 
the  vulgar  class  who  daily  sent  in  their  offerings 
of  all  kinds  to  M'Tse. 

This    morning   then   had    been  chosen  by  Ba 
Beker  for  presentation  of  my  "  salaam-alak  "  to 


PKESENTS    FOn   m'tSE.  113 

M'Tse,  wlio  had  already  sent  his  brother,  as  well 
as  Ide  his  dragoman,  to  find  out  the  nature  of  my 
presents.  At  eight  o'clock  a  "  marsalah  "  arrived 
to  announce  that  M'  Tse  was  awaiting  my  visit.  Ba 
Beker,  as  master  of  the  ceremonies,  took  charge  of 
the  boxes,  and  we  started.  Much  the  same  scene 
took  place  as  on  the  day  before,  proceeding  in  uni- 
form and  on  horseback,  my  soldiers  preceding  me. 
Certainly  not  less  than  five  thousand  people  blocked 
the  road,  and  blackened  the  hill-tops.  Arrived 
at  the  palace,  M'Tse  arose  from  his  throne,  and 
smilingly  beckoned  me  in.  Resuming  his  seat  he 
motioned  me  to  the  chair  occupied  by  me  the  pre- 
vious day.  A  council  was  now  in  session  here, 
giving  a  semblance  of  order  and  government ;  so 
that  the  assembly  in  the  hut  gave  the  impression 
of  a  Cabinet  Council. 

M'Tse  was  dressed  to-day  in  a  violet-coloured 
silk,  embroidered  with  gold  and  wore  a  new 
Egyptian  tarbouche  (fez)  that  he  had  evidently 
procured  from  Ba  Beker. 

Several  large  cases  contained  the  gifts  to  be 
presented.  These  were  brought,  and  Ba  Beker 
was  ordered  to  lay  them  one  by  one  at  the  feet  of 
the  "  Sultan."  Bleached  cotton  cloths,  red  Turkey 
and  tarbouches  were  highly  prized ;  for  the  white 
cotton  is  alone  worn  by  the  members  of  the  Court. 
Calicoes,  and  an  immense  lot  of  beads,  necklaces, 
rings,  and  bracelets  (known  as  "  Sue  Sue  "),  were 
received  with  outbursts  of  admiration.     A  mass 


114  CENTRAL    AFEIOA. 

of  other  articles,  that  I  do  not  remember,  were 
added.  A  large  mirror,  with  gilt  frame,  was  an 
object  of  great  curiosity.  A  music-box  tliat  had 
served  to  beguile  my  weary  hours  at  night,  when 
on  the  road  it  played  "  Tramp,  tramp,  tramp,  the 
boys  are  marching,"  "  Dixie,"  and  "  Johnny  comes 
marching  home  "  (in  a  fearfully  inebriated  state,  if 
one  might  judge  from  the  stops  and  uncertain 
notes),  and  other  airs,  was  an  old  friend,  from 
whom  I  parted  with  regret.  I  added  a  magnifi- 
cent gun  (Reilly,  No.  8  Elephant),  with  cartridges 
of  explosive  ball.  M'Tse  was  highly  delighted  with 
this,  and  naively  said,  "  Surely  you  are  a  great 
man  to  make  me  a  present  of  a  gun  like  this. 
Can't  you  kill  Keba  Rega  for  me?"  This  was 
his  constant  theme,  owing  to  a  traditional  jealousy 
that  existed  between  the  Kings  of  Unyoro  and 
Ugunda;  and  now  on  the  part  of  M'Tse  a  desire 
to  make  war  upon  Keba  Rega,  which  was  only 
checked  by  the  fact  that  the  "  Uuyori "  were  a 
very  warlike  people,  and  he  was  afraid  of  them. 
The  greatest  impression  made  upon  him  and  his 
courtiers,  over  all  other  of  the  gifts  presented 
him  was  the  little  electric  battery — "my  little 
Lubari,"  that  in  the  early  stages  of  my  journey 
from  Kissembois  I  numbered  as  one  of  my  five 
companions.  For  four  hours  I  tried  its  effect 
upon  them,  amid  the  most  boisterous  "  wah ! 
wahs!"  of  astonishment  and  delight.  M'Tse  at 
length  deigned  to  try  its  electric   current,   and, 


PERMISSION   TO    VISIT   THE    LAKE.  115 

when  recovered  from  the  shock,  gazed  at  it  with 
an  expression  of  awe  mingled  with  delight. 
When  I  rose  to  go  I  saw  how  "Liibari"  had 
aided  me ;  for  M'Tse  said  to  me,  "  You  are  my 
brother !  anything  that  you  may  want  to  do  here 
you  have  only  to  ask  me."  In  subsequent  inter- 
views, that  were  of  almost  daily  occurrence  (if 
I  were  not  too  ill),  I  broached  to  him  my  desire  to 
visit  the  Lake  Victoria,  and  cross  to  its  eastern 
shore,  explore  it,  and  pass  thus  from  the  river  to 
Gondokoro.  The  proposal  was  received  with  every 
mark  of  disapprobation  by  the  ministers.  They 
said,  "  The  white  man  is  he  a  fool  that  he  speaks 
of  travelling  on  the  river  ?  *  Speeky '  (Captain 
Speke)  tried  to  do  so  and  could  not;  and  what 
will  he  do  against  the  people  of  Keba  Eega  ?  " 

I  was  not  disheartened  at  this,  for  I  expected 
opposition ;  besides  a  strange  superstition  existed 
among  these  people,  that  the  opposite  side  of  the 
Lake  Victoria  was  inhabited  by  "  Afrites  "  (devils), 
beings  who  exercised  a  guardianship  over  these 
waters,  and  had  frequently  caught  and  killed  many 
of  the  people  of  Ugunda.  Again  and  again  I 
referred  to  the  subject;  subsequently  delivering 
him  a  long  lecture  on  the  opening  of  the  river  for 
navigation  and  for  the  exportation  of  his  ivory. 
By  means  of  descriptions  of  houses,  palaces,  and 
carriages,  finally  aided  by  rude  sketches,  I  con- 
veyed to  him,  what  was  at  first  unintelligible; 
for  he  could  not  comprehend  a  small  sketch,  but 


116  CENTRAL    AFRICA. 

invariably  inverted  it.  At  last  I  made  him  un- 
derstand ;  describing  other  princes,  not  so  great 
or  powerful  as  he,  who  lived  in  houses,  and  had 
carriages,  and  were  surrounded  with  luxury  and 
comfort :  "  whilst  you,  M'Tse,  with  all  your  ivory, 
are  little  better  off  than  the  poorest  of  your  people ; 
for,  like  them,  you  have  nothing  that  goes  to 
make  up  the  life  of  the  great  King  you  are."  He 
finally  consented  that  I  should  visit  the  Lake, 
but  my  return  by  the  river  was  flatly  refused. 
"  No,"  said  he,  "  you  must  not  go,  you  will  be 
killed ;  the  river  does  not  go,  as  you  think,  to 
Mrooli:  it  goes  away  to  the  eastward.  You 
will  be  lost  and  die  of  hunger,  or  be  killed,  and 
then  your  Sultan  will  come  and  kill  me." 

I  confess  that  this  reply  rather  cooled  my 
ardour  for  the  moment.  -What  if  the  river 
went  eastwards  and  not  to  Mrooli?  My  death 
might  certainly  be  the  consequence,  from  either 
of  the  causes  he  assigned.  But  I  held  fast  to  my 
resolve,  and  in  a  subsequent  interview  I  said 
to  him,  "  You  refuse  then  to  permit  me  to 
return ;  if  so  I  will  stay  here  and  die,  and  what 
will  be  the  consequence?  Your  enemy,  Keba 
Rega,  will  send  word  that  you  have  caused  my 
death ;  and  the  steamers  and  boats  that  would 
otherwise  come  to  bring  you  articles  of  luxury, 
materials  to  build  your  houses,  and  make  you  a 
great  king,  will  all  be  given  to  Keba  Rega  :  who, 
becoming  powerful,  will  some  day  come  and  fight 


ILLNESS    OF   MYSELF   AND    STAFF.  117 

you,  and  perhaps  conquer  your  country."  I 
rested  my  case  upon  this,  for  I  saw  that  I  had 
touched  the  vital  spot  (his  jealousy  and  hatred  of 
Keba  Rega)  whilst  his  mind,  inflamed  with  a 
desire  to  be  great  in  the  sense  I  had  represented, 
I  doubted  not  would  cause  him  to  accede  to 
my  demand.  I  did  not  see  him  again  for  several 
days,  for  I  was  quite  ill,  prostrated  completely 
with  fever  and  a  distressing  diarrhoea.  M'Tse, 
fearful  of  my  dying  on  his  hands,  and  dreading 
the  consequences,  sent  incessantly  to  know  my 
condition. 

On  the  night  of  the  23rd,  there  being  no  rain, 
I  secretly  arranged  to  send  up  some  rockets  and 
fireworks  I  had  brought  with  me,  reserving  several 
for  the  river  navigation ;  for  I  had  resolved  at  all 
hazards  to  return  that  way. 

At  a  given  signal  the  rockets  were  sent  up,  and 
the  greatest  consternation  and  alarm  prevailed. 
I  had  however  arranged  that  M'Tse  should  be  kept 
but  a  moment  in  doubt.  The  fearful  scramble  at 
the  palace  (the  fright  was  reported  to  me  as  really 
terrible),  was  succeeded  however  by  a  corre- 
sponding expression  of  delight. 

My  visits  were  now  less  frequent  at  the  palace, 
for  I  was  seriously  ill ;  and  besides,  almost  every 
visit  was  attended  by  a  human  sacrifice  :  and  my 
soul  sickened  at  this  kind  of  honour ! 

The  24th  and  25th  I  was  seriously  ill,  and  con- 
fined to  the  hut.     I  was  so  weak  as  to  be  scarcely 


118  CENTRAL    AFRICA. 

able  to  walk :  wliilst  my  flesli  was  nearly  trans- 
parent :  and  my  once  muscular  legs  and  arms  were 
mere  skin  and  bone.  Unfortunately  I  was 
without  proper  medicine,  and  chewed  leaves  in 
the  vain  hope  to  find  them  astringent  or  tonic. 
Kellerman  and  Adam  were  now  likewise  on  their 
backs,  and  absolutely  cried  like  children.  Keller- 
man  said  to  me,  "  I  am  utterly  without  hope  of 
ever  returning,"  and  gave  up  to  despair.  I  never 
could  induce  him  to  go  to  the  palace :  though 
M'Tse  frequently  asked  for  him.  I  was  half 
inclined  to  believe  that  Kellerman  never  doubted 
but  that  one  day  I  too  would  be  sacrificed  :  as  he 
was  always  very  anxious  about  my  return,  when- 
ever absent  at  the  palace. 

During  all  this  time  I  had  received  a  great 
many  visits,  and  reserved  some  presents  (secretly 
given)  for  those  visitors.  I  endeavoured  to  trace, 
by  patient  questioning,  some  tradition,  that  might 
give  a  show  of  reason  to  the  origin  ascribed  to  them. 
Here,  as  elsewhere,  I  failed  to  discover  it.  The 
customs  of  one  king,  as  of  one  Sheik,  are  lost  in 
the  egotism  and  vanity  of  his  successor.  Per- 
sonal rule,  especially  among  savages,  ever  has 
this  disadvantage,  the  successor  obliterating  all 
traces  of  his  predecessor — hence  even  tradition 
ceases.  In  my  navigation  and  exploration  of 
the  river  Juba,  on  the  eastern  coast  of  Africa, 
half  a  degree  below  the  Equator,  I  found  nume- 
rous tribes  speaking  languages  in  which,  on  com- 


IBN   BATDTAH.  119 

paring  a  small  vocabulary  of  words,  tliere  was  an 
evident  correspondence  with  the  language  of  the 
Ugundi.  Thus  "  Mezi  "  (water),  in  this  language 
is  the  identical  word  in  the  language  of 
"M'yooah,"  who,  like  the  Ugunda,  prefix  M' — 
M'Ugunda,  to  designate  the  "country  of;" 
"Bosi"  (a  goat),  is  "Unbosi"  in  Ugunda; 
"  Koko  "  (chicken),  the  same,  and  many 
other  words  are  synonymous. 

Central  Africa,  subsequent  to  the  flow  of  the 
Moslem  invasions  on  its  eastern  coast,  had  been 
invaded  doubtless  by  the  Arab  nomad,  kindred 
spirit  to  that  noted  Arab  traveller,  Ibn  Batutah, 
imbued  with  a  desire  to  discover  its  mysteries,  or 
actuated  by  the  greed  of  gain  to  collect  its  gold, 
its  ivory,  and  its  slaves.  Whilst  bearing  with 
him  the  banner  of  Mahomet,  he  implanted  in  his 
march  among  the  negroes  the  first  idea  of  a 
divinity,  scarcely  definable  to-day;  and  by  amal- 
gamation, operating  a  change  in  the  colour,  and 
the  typical  characteristics  of  the  negro  of  Central 
Africa.  For  although  the  woolly  hair  is  still 
there,  the  nose  and  mouth  have  in  these  re- 
Sfions  lost — the  former  its  flatness,  and  the  latter 
its  thickness — whilst  the  tint  of  the  Ugunda  is  of 
dark  copper  colour.  Among  these  people  how- 
ever, I  have  noticed  that  there  are  many  of  the 
real  negro  type  in  colour,  hair,  &c.,  showing 
thus  perhaps  the  original  type  of  the  natives  of 
the  country  prior  to  amalgamation. 


120  CENTEAL   AFEICA. 

Later,  in  an  expedition  to  tlie  Makraka  Niam, 
on  the  confines  of  the  Monbutto  country,  I 
remarked  that  the  tribes  on  the  river  Yeh — the 
MundOj  Muro,  Abaker,  Kiyeh,  and  others — though 
speaking  different  languages,  bore  a  striking 
resemblance  in  colour,  hair,  habits,  dress,  and 
music  with  the  people  o£  Ugunda,  showing  thus 
an  original  unity  of  race  in  the  negro.  The 
traditions  so  often  accredited  to  the  negro,  so  far 
as  my  experience  goes,  have  no  other  foundation 
than  in  his  vanity  or  his  caprice.  M'Tse,  when 
asked  as  to  his  origin,  replied  by  pointing  proudly 
to  the  Albino  boy:  to  be  considered  as  of  the 
white  race  being  a  great  point  in  his  ambition, 
remarked  among  other  negroes  as  well.  In  pro- 
bable connexion  with  the  theory  here  advanced  I 
have  to  cite  that,  during  an  interview,  when  I  had 
given  him  a  gilt  and  Turkey-red  bound  volume  of 
Burton's  "  Travels,"  he  produced  a  voluminous 
Arab  manuscript,  worn  and  discoloured  by  age, 
"  that  I  might  bind  it,  and  make  it  like  the  book  I 
had  given  him."  Fearing  a  loss  of  prestige  if  I 
attempted  it,  I  endeavoured  to  make  him  under- 
stand that  I  was  not  a  bookbinder :  that  work  of 
that  nature  required  special  labour,  &c. ;  all  to  no 
effect  however.  I  took  the  book,  and  with  the 
aid  of  Kellerman  succeeded  in  making  a  plain 
cover  of  paper;  using  as  paste  a  mucilage  made 
of  the  flour  of  the  banana.  This  book  was  highly 
reverenced,  and  had  been  given  him  by  the  late 


INVITED   TO    THE    PALACE.  121 

King  Sima,  bis  father.  How  it  had.  readied 
Ugunda  he  could  not  say ;  but  Ide,  bis  dragoman 
and  instructor  in  Arabic,  told  me  that  it  was  of 
such  ancient  date,  and  the  writing  so  different 
from  his  Arabic,  that  he  could  decipher  but  a  few 
words  here  and  there.  This  served  to  strengthen 
my  conviction,  that  the  Arabs  referred  to  above, 
coming  from  the  east  coast,  without  doubt  had 
brought  this  manuscript  with  them  :  the  preserva- 
tion of  which,  however,  was  as  unique  as  strange 
in  the  history  of  a  race  which  ever  strives  to 
forget  and  obliterate  the  past,  rather  than  retain 
records  of  it. 

June  2Qtli. — Though  ill  and  suffering,  and  sup- 
ported by  my  two  soldiers,  I  responded  to  the 
pressing  invitation  of  M'Tse  to  go  to  the  palace. 
He  said  to  me,  "  Mbguru,  come  and  see  my  women ; 
they  are  'kurungi'  (good)."  He  dragged  me 
after  him,  and  seemed  delighted  to  present  me  to 
his  wives,  that  thronged  around  me,  no  longer 
abashed  as  on  the  first  visit ;  and  this  familiarity 
encouraged  by  me  at  length  went  so  far  as  to  be 
checked  abruptly  by  M'Tse,  who  said,  "Let  us 
leave  them  now,  as  they  will  annoy  you."  This 
was  said  whilst  I  fancied  that  a  shadow  of  jealousy 
flitted  across  his  face,  and  with  a  flash  of  the  eye, 
that  told  me  he  would  in  no  way  consent  to  play 
the  role  of  a  "  mari  sage,"  like  Offenbach's  good 
king  Menelaus. 

Whilst  walking   among   the   banana   groves   I 

K 


122  CENTRAL   AFRICA. 

again  toucTied  upon  the  subject  of  his  permitting 
me  to  explore  the  opposite  shore  of  the  lake,  and 
to  return  bj  the  river.  In  imagination  I  drew 
for  him  houses  of  wood  and  brick  that  would 
replace  the  grass-huts  of  his  people :  and  how 
his  army,  now  consisting  of  twenty  or  thirty  men, 
armed  with  old  firelocks,  would  all  have  beautiful 
guns  and  uniforms  like  those  of  my  soldiers,  Sai'd 
and  Abd-el :  and  he  himself  a  carriage  and  a  horse, 
to  carry  him  in  state  as  a  king.  I  would  have 
desisted  had  I  known  the  price  of  the  impression 
I  had  made  upon  his  exalted  imagination  :  for  he 
now  resolved,  despite  the  opposition  of  his  mi- 
nisters, to  accede  to  my  demand.  These  men 
hated  me  intensely,  as  Selim  reported  me  their 
conversation,  and  had  instructed  him  to  tell  me 
the  most  horrible  stories  of  cruelties  practised  by 
the  people  on  the  river.  Selim  exaggerated,  with- 
out doubt,  these  stories,  for  both  he  and  Keller- 
man  regarded  me  as  mad,  in  persisting  in  what 
they  thought  must  lead  to  certain  death.  Said 
and  Abd-el-Rahman  shared  in  these  feelings  I 
could  easily  see,  but  they  did  not  say  so  in  the 
conversations  I  had  with  them :  for  they  were  my 
constant  companions,  and  almost  my  every  thought 
found  expression  to  them  in  the  long  nights,  when 
the  rain  and  storm  howled  without,  and  when 
we  were  obliored  to  huddle  close  around  the  fire  in 
my  hut.  The  wood  burned  badly,  for  it  was  wet 
and  soggy,  and  gave  out  little  heat.     Kellerman 


I    SUFFER   FROM   DELIRIUM.  123 

and  Adam  were  always  in  their  huts,  wrapped  in 
their  blankets ;  while  Selim  and  his  numerous 
wives  had  the  same  hut  with  "  Ugunda,"  who 
was  again  becoming  sleek  and  fat  upon  Ugunda 
grass,  and  his  now  almost  habitual  regime  of  large 
golden  bananas  or  plantains.  Selim  told  me  that 
he  occasionally  gave  him  "  merissa  "  to  drink :  and 
that  the  Ugunda,  who  daily  came  in  great  crowds  to 
look  at  him,  regarded  him  with  awe  and  fear, 
encouraged  by  the  wily  Selim,  who  told  them  fa- 
bulous stories  of  what  "  Ugunda  "  said  about  them, 
naively  remarking  that  his  chief  complaint  was 
that  the  natives  did  not  give  him  enough  merissa 
— an  intoxicating  drink  of  which  Selim  was  him- 
self over-fond. 

On  the  29th  the  constant  fever  and  dysentery 
of  the  past  few  days  had  now  merged  into  de- 
lirium. Attended  alone  by  Sai'd,  for  Abd-el- 
Rahman,  in  common  with  all,  save  Said  and 
Selim,  was  suffering  fearfully  from  fever,  I  cried 
incessantly  for  ice  and  snow.  "  Tortoni's "  at 
Paris  became  the  one  sole  cry,  the  North  Pole  of 
my  fever-racked  brain.  When  its  fury  was  spent 
I  was  so  weak  and  emaciated,  that  I  heard  my 
men  more  than  once  discussing  what  they  should 
do  in  the  event  of  my  death ;  and  consternation 
was  written  on  their  features,  as  they  were  brought 
to  consider  the  impossibility  of  their  return ;  the 
more  so  since  Ba  Beker  had  rendered  himself  an 
object  of  hatred  and  suspicion  to  all,   and  who 


124  CENTRAL   AFRICA. 

would  doubtless,  should  anything  happen  to  me, 
revenge  himself  upon  them. 

Adam,  my  cook,  as  if  roused  to  action  by  the 
consciousness  of  what  threatened  him,  in  common 
with  the  rest,  came  to  me  and  told  me  that  Ba 
Beker,  to  whom  he  had  applied  to  kill  an  ox  to 
make  me  soup,  had  absolutely  refused  to  do  so ; 
stating  that  the  cattle  sent  me,  now  numbering 
sixty  heads  of  splendid  beasts,  were  all  his.  I 
sent  for  him,  and  in  my  anger  I  denounced  him  as 
iin  ingrate  scoundrel;  to  which  he  only  bent  his 
head  in  submission,  astonished  that  there  was 
still  enough  vitality  in  me  to  make  a  scene. 
From  this  moment  Ba  Beker  became  my  bitter 
enemy ;  secretly  he  conspired  against  me,  and 
caused  me  all  the  subsequent  trouble  on  the 
road  to  Urondogani  detailed  hereafter^  Though 
he  used  every  art  to  convince  M'Tse  that  I 
was  in  Ugunda  for  the  purpose  of  dispossessing 
him,  M'Tse  remained  faithful  to  his  pledged 
friendship  to  me;  otherwise  I  could  never  have 
left  Ugunda  alive. 

From  this  day  till  the  6th  of  July  I  was  unable 
to  move  from  my  hammock,  guarded  by  my 
faithful  and  devoted  soldiers.  In  the  interval,  as 
in  mockery,  M'Ts^  sent  frequently  to  me,  asking 
for  "dower"  (medicine),  for  which  all  Africans 
have  a  strange  infatuation,  declaring  that  he  had 
stomach-ache,  and  buzzing  in  his  ears,  and  sore 
eyes :  all  of  which  Ide,  who  knows  that  I  have  no 


UGUNDA ITS   PEODUCTS.  125 

medicine,  tells  me  is  false.  Instead  of  Sir  Samuel 
Baker's  idea  of  the  regeneration  of  tlie  negro,  by 
"  a  man  in  full  highland  dress  and  bagpipes,  who 
would  set  all  psalms  to  lively  tunes,  and  the 
negroes  would  learn  to  sing  them  immediately;" 
it  would  work  better  to  send  an  apothecary 
well  stocked  with  drugs.  Sir  Samuel,  however, 
in  giving  this  idea  as  to  success  of  bag-pipes, 
may  have  been  actuated  by  a  desire  to  transfer 
those  doubtfully  melodious  instruments  to  a  field 
of  more  usefulness  and  appreciation  ! 

I  had  been  here  now  sufficiently  long  to  form  an 
idea  of  the  country,  its  people,  and  its  products. 

The  country  is  rolling  and  picturesque;  its 
groves  of  banana  trees,  that  everywhere  abound, 
adorn  the  verdant  landscape  on  hill  and  dale.  But 
nothing — absolutely  nothing — of  that  grand  and 
magnificent  spectacle  depicted  by  the  pens  of  more 
enthusiastic  travellers,  who  would  make,  to  willing 
readers,  a  Paradise  of  Africa,  which  in  reality 
is,  and  must  ever  be  a  grave-yard  to  Europeans. 
The  soil  is  richly  impregnated  with  iron,  rock 
crystal,  and  granite.  The  principal  tree  in 
Ugunda  is  the  wild  fig,  from  whose  bark  a 
cloth  is  manufactured  by  incessant  pounding. 
Exposed  to  the  air  it  assumes  a  light-brown 
colour,  when  the  different  pieces  are  sewn  to- 
gether. The  products  are  Indian  corn,  sweet 
potatoes,  sugar-cane  of  a  superior  quality.  To- 
bacco,   resembling    the    famous    "  perique "     of 


126  CENTRAL   AFRICA. 

Louisiana,  is  grown  in  large  quantities ;  and  could 
be  made  a  valuable  article  of  export  on  account 
of  its  delicious  flavour. 

There  are  no  fruits  except  tlie  banana  and 
plantain,  wbich.  grow  wild  and  in  greatest  luxuri- 
ance. The  tree  is  very  large,  and  the  watery 
matter  contained  in  the  stock  serves  the  Ugunda 
for  water,  when  he  cannot  procure  it  elsewhere. 
The  banana  is  scarcely  ever  eaten  in  a  ripe  state, 
save  by  the  females,  who  extract  from  it  an 
unfermented  and  delicious  liquor.  Gourds  of 
bottle-shape  are  strung  around  their  necks,  from 
which,  from  time  to  time,  they  drink  The  banana, 
the  principal  article  of  food,  is  prepared  either 
by  roasting  or  by  a  sweating  process  already  de- 
scribed. "  Merissa  "  (fermented  liquor,  whether 
of  banana  or  dourah)  is  the  drink  of  the  male,  and 
a  source  of  much  intemperance.  The  cattle  of 
the  country  equal  the  choice  breeds  of  England  : 
they  do  not  however  form  a  part  of  the  diet  of  the 
people.  Sheep  and  goat's  flesh  is  almost  the  only 
animal  food  that  is  eaten. 

The  industry  of  the  country  consists  in  the 
tanning  of  skins  of  animals,  in  which  a  favourable 
comparison  may  be  made  with  that  of  Europe. 
The  cultivation  of  the  soil  is  by  the  women,  and 
only  sufficient  to  support  life.  The  men  occupy 
themselves  with  the  elephant  chase,  for  ivory, 
which  they  do  in  the  manner  hereafter  described  as 
practised  by  the  people  west  of  the  Bahr-el-Abiad. 


TJGUNDA ITS    GOVERNMENT.  127 

The  animal  kingdom  comprises  almost  all  the 
beasts  common  to  Africa :  elephant,  lion,  giraffe, 
leopard,  wild  cat,  hippopotamus,  and  crocodile ; 
the  zebra  is  said  to  be  found  here,  but  in  vain  I 
essayed  to  procure  one. 

It  is  in  the  tanning  of  skins  that  they  are 
especially  skilled,  vying  in  finish  with  specimens 
of  European  work. 

Sugar-cane  is  considered  a  great  luxury,  and 
very  often  one  sees  the  Ugunda  passing,  chewing 
the  end  of  a  long  cane  that  trails  behind  him. 

European  goods,  copper,  and  shells  constitute 
the  money  of  the  country,  in  exchange  for  ivory 
or  cattle. 

They  are  very  skilful  workers  in  iron,  and  their 
lances  are  very  nicely  finished. 

The  cloth,  referred  to  above,  from  the  bark  of 
tree,  is  not  so  thick  as  that  manufactured  by  the 
Makraka  Niam-Niam,  but  the  same  in  every  other 
respect.  Their  music  horns  are  composed  of  ele- 
phant tusks.  Their  drums  are  very  large,  and 
their  hoarse  sounds,  accompanied  by  cawing  in 
imitation  of  the  crow,  are  anything  but  agreeable. 

M'Tse  has  a  form  of  government  unique,  per- 
haps, among  all  African  potentates.  There  is 
division  of  labour,  and  a  distribution  of  the  service 
of  state  among  chiefs,  whose  appellation  of  Mton- 
ofoli,  with  their  attributes,  entitle  them  to  rank  as 
Ministers  of  State  and  Members  of  Cabinet.  These 
ofiicials  come  next  in  rank  to  the  "  Kahotah,"  who 


128  CENTEAL  AFRICA. 

takes  precedence  with  "Kongowee,"  Generalissimo 
of  the  army.  This  important  personage  is  at  the 
head  of  all  the  natives,  who  are  at  all  times  armed 
with  the  lance ;  a  few  only  being  armed  with 
muskets  (flint-locks),  and  these  are  generally 
detailed  for  service  in  the  immediate  vicinity 
of  the  king.  Many  of  these  men  had  lost  their 
flints,  and  came  to  me  as  a  great  favour  to 
beg  them.  I  had  none,  of  course  :  but  to  their 
utter  bewilderment  I  picked  them  up  from  their 
own  earth  ;  a  precious  discovery  to  them,  since 
the  very  few  they  possessed  had  been  procured 
with  the  guns  at  Zanzibar. 

The  population  ofUgunda  proper,  I  esteemed 
at  500,000,  whilst  a  number  of  Sheiks  of  adjacent 
tribes,  whose  numbers  are  unknown,  are  tributary. 
Their  huts  are  built  of  jungle-grass,  the  walls  of 
which  are  of  sugar-cane.  The  interior  is  divided 
into  compartments,  and  kept  very  clean. 

The  salutation  of  the  Ugunda  is  very  peculiar. 
As  two  persons  meet  the  word  "Ouangah  !"  is  re- 
sponded to  by  "  Oh  hi !"  which  continues  from  an 
elevated  voice  to  a  lower  tone  until  it  becomes 
scarcely  audible ;  then,  and  not  till  then,  does  the 
conversation  commence.  The  word  "  Agambe  ! "  is 
frequently  used  in  conversation,  and  corresponds 
to  "Do  you  listen?"  To  superiors  the  salu- 
tation is  different;  the  prostrate  form  is  then 
elevated  to  squatting  on  the  haunches  with  legs 
under  the  body,  the  hands  extended  flat  upon  the 


INVITED   TO   THE    PALACE.  129 

ground,  as  an  expression  of  humility  or  of  thanks, 
the  hands  clasped,  are  raised  in  quick  succession, 
whilst  the  word  "Yanzig!  yanzig !  yanzig!"  is 
constantly  repeated. 

On  the  6th  of  July  I  had  suflB.ciently  recovered 
to  respond  to  the  pressing  invitation  of  the  king 
to  go  to  the  palace.  M'Ts^  had  never  yet  conde- 
scended to  visit  me ;  it  would  have  been  a  want 
of  dignity  that  even  the  TJgunda,  passionately 
devoted  to  him,  would  doubtless  have  resented. 
M'Tse  was  for  them  the  sole  King  of  Africa,  and 
was  the  constant  theme  of  their  conversations. 
He  could  and  did  send  them  to  be  decapitated,  but 
this  was  his  privilege  alone,  and  they  were  content, 
nay  happy,  that  the  Mtongoli  had  no  other  au- 
thority over  them  than  the  cutting  off  of  their  ears; 
the  Mtongoli  himself  often  sharing  the  same  fate 
as  the  mass.  "What  secret  of  government  M'Tse 
possessed  to  govern  these  people  so  rudely,  and  yet 
be  beloved  by  them,  was  an  enigma  to  me.  To 
return  to  the  palace  then  where  I  saw  assembled 
on  that  morning  a  great  mass  of  men : — in  front 
of  the  palace  door  sat  seven  men  in  the  posture 
above  described. 

Drums  and  horns  were  making  the  usual  din, 
whilst  the  throng  without  was  dense.  Within  sat 
along  the  wall  the  Mtongoli :  and  at  their  accus- 
tomed posts,  along  the  corridors,  the  fiery-eyed  and 
fiendish  looking  executioners  ;  their  fantastic  uni-. 
form  in  brilliant  contrast  to  the  neat  white  shirt  of 


130  CENTEAL  ArmoA. 

the  Mtongoli.  M'Tse  sat  on  his  royal  chair,  a 
questioner  of  and  listener  to ,  the  men  crouched  at 
the  door. 

Motioned  to  niy  accustomed  seat  by  M'Ts^,  I 
leaned  feebly  against  the  po^t,  weak  and  faint. 
Unable  to  comprehend  the  conversation,  my  eyes 
"wandered  over  this  strange  assembly,  and  gra- 
dually losing  myself  in  reflection  I  thought  of  the 
world  beyond,  shut  out  from  me  by  thousands 
of  miles  of  weary,  deadly  travel.  Distant  from 
Gondokoro  even  more  than  600  miles,  I  felt 
myself  succumbing  to  disease  that  now  had  me 
completely  in  its  grasp,  I  no  longer  dared  hope 
of  return ;  and  a  feeling  stole  over  me  that  my 
persistence  with  M'Tse  to  permit  me  to  return  by 
the  river  was  useless.  Despair  was  taking  the 
place  of  the  energy  and  hope  that  till  now  had 
kept  me  alive.  I  had  reached  that  point,  where 
the  pain  of  freezing  limbs  gives  place  to  the 
fatal  happy  slumber,  half  waking  half  conscious, 
the  precursor  of  death  ! 

A  crash  of  horns  and  sound  of  drums  broke 
upon  my  ears  and  awakened  me,  startled  from  my 
reveries — the  seven  men  had  disappeared,  and  the 
cries  without  too  truly  told  me  that  the  execu- 
tioners, no  longer  in  their  place,  were  plying  their 
deadly  office.  My  last  conversation  had  resulted  in 
determining  M'Tse  to  grant  my  request ;  this  was 
tiTC  bloody  price  paid  that  the  world  might  know 
something  of  this  mysterious  region.     I  have  said 


ANOTHER    HUMAN    SACEIFICE.  131 

here  before  that  they  believed  demons,  "  Afrites," 
guarded  with  jealous  care  the  opposite  side  of  the 
lake,  and  the  river  Victoria  Nile  running  there- 
from north.  M'Tse  in  consenting  to  my  going 
there,  had  caught  several  of  these  evil  guardians ; 
with  what  result  the  executions  made  apparent. 
I  felt  for  a  moment  as  if  fixed  to  the  spot,  and  my 
anxious  look  of  inquiry  caused  M'Tse  to  speak 
thus : — "  0  Mbuguru,  thou  hast  asked  to  go  and 
visit  regions  inaccessible  to  men  ;  that  thou 
mightest  do  so  I  have  killed  these  men,  otherwise 
they  would  have  killed  you.  It  hurts  my  heart 
("  batn,"  belly,  is  always  used  by  Africans 
instead  of  heart),  to  kill  these  Af rites,  but  they 
have  already  don-e  my  people  great  injury." 

M'Tse  had  doubtless  heard  that  I  condemned 
the  practice  :  and  I  had  told  him  myself  that 
a  Great  King  in  the  outer  world  never  committed 
such  acts  toprove  His  greatness :  hence  his  apology. 

Though  I  felt  elated  at  the  permission  of  visiting 
the  Lake,there  came  a  shadow  of  regret  as  I  thought 
of  the  now  mangled  bodies  without,  and  my  in- 
direct complicity  in  their  death. 

Immediately  after  a  number  of  warriors  rushed 
in,  headed  by  the  "  Kongo  wee,"  who  made  a  sham 
attack,  vociferating,  gesticulating,  and  brandish- 
ing their  clubs,  and  throwing  themselves  at  the 
feet  of  M'Tse;  a  ceremony  which  meant  to  testify 
their  approbation  of  the  act :  saying  at  the  same 
time,  "You  are    the  Great    M'Tse,   and  we  are 


132  CENTRAL   APKICA. 

your  servants."  SaYd  and  Abd-el  stood  at  the 
door  and  witnessed  the  executions;  M'Tse  beckoned 
them  to  approach,  which  they  did  with  somewhat 
doubtful  step.  I  saw  that  for  the  moment  a 
suspicion,  that  a  hke  "fantasiah"  might  be  in 
store  for  us  all,  was  quickly  flashing  through  the 
minds  of  the  two  soldiers,  who  advanced  directly 
towards  me.  I  felt  greatly  relieved  when  this 
strange  capricious  king  begged  me  to  cause  them 
"  to  play  soldier ; "  as  he  wanted  me  to  organize 
and  drill  his  army ;  telling  me  that  he  would  give 
me  any  quantity  of  ivory ;  and  make  me  a  king. 
The  first  proposition  I  accepted,  the  other  I 
refused,  telling  him  that  I  wished  him  to  send  his 
ivory  over  the  road  I  should  open  to  commerce  by 
the  river.  Said  and  Abd-el  went  through  the 
manual  of  arms,  the  facings  and  firings,  to  his 
great  delight,  and  amid  cries  of  the  Mtongoli  of 
"Kurungi!  Kurungi! "  (good).  Soon  after  I  begged 
his  permission  to  retire.  He  arose  and  accom- 
panied me  to  the  door,  looking  in  wonder  at  my 
horse.  As  I  mounted  and  rode  away  he  said, 
"Mbuguru,  you  will  not  forget  to  give  me  a 
carriage  and  a  horse."  I  said,  "Yes,  M'Ts^, 
anything  you  may  ask."  Like  all  Africans  he 
was  a  great  beggar,  and  was  never  appeased. 

^  His  Highness  the  Khedive  sent  a  carriage  for  M'Tse,  and 
M,  Linant  expected  to  take  it  to  him.  It  was  ordered 
to  be  sent  long  l>efore  M.  Linant  or  Stanley  had  reached 
M'Ts^. 


TAKE    LEAVE    OF   m'tSE.  133 

On  the  9tlil  went  to  the  palace  to  make  my  adieu. 
T  was  received  with  great  ceremony,  and  M'Tse 
was  arrayed  in  a  white  robe  for  the  first  time.  I 
thanked  him  in  a  fe^  words  for  his  great  kindness 
to  me,  and  assured  him  that  the  world  should 
hear  more  of  him,  as  indeed  I  found  him  to  be  a 
great  African  King.  I  hoped  that  he  would  soon 
profit  by  my  visit,  and  that  ere  long  a  steamer 
would  be  on  the  river ;  when  he  might  go  without 
fatigue,  and  see  himself  the  scenes  which  I  had 
heretofore  detailed  to  him  of  a  world  unseen.  He 
begged  me  to  stay  and  build  him  a  house  and 
carriage,  and  in  fact  made  every  effort  to  cause 
me  to  remain.  He  had  already  sent  me  an  escort 
and  porters  for  my  luggage,  and  I  had  arranged 
that  Kellerman  and  Adam  should  go  direct  to 
Urondogani  with  baggage  and  porters,  and  await 
me  there  :  until  my  passage  across  the  Lake 
to  the  eastern  shore ;  then  to  turn  northward, 
to  reach  Urondogani  by  the  river ;  a  design 
which  was  frustrated,  as  will  hereafter  appear. 

I  left  M'Tse,  and  the  court,  where  I  had  been 
nearly  a  month.  They  all  crowded  around  me, 
and  M'Tse  warmly  pressed  my  hand,  telling  me, 
"  I  love  you,  Mbuguru,  you  are  my  brother :  you 
will  find  boats  for  you  at  Urondogani ;  let  me 
know  if  you  have  any  trouble."  I  turned  my  back 
on  the  capital,  accompanied  by  my  two  soldiers 
and  Sais,  and  a  numerous  escort  of  honour.  As 
the  column  wound  round  the  hill  on  which  was 


134  CENTEAL   AFKICA. 

situated  the  palace,  tlie  hareem  came  peering 
through  the  enclosure,  to  wave  me  adieu.  I  had 
only  commenced  the  march  when  a  furious  storm 
broke  over  our  heads,  sending  the  guard  for 
shelter  in  every  direction.  I  was  finally  obliged  to 
return.  For  several  days  the  storm  continued 
with  unabated  fury ;  and  during  this  time  I  was 
again  seized  with  a  most  violent  fever,  as  the  tem- 
perature became  cold,  and  the  dampness  obliged 
us  all  to  hover  around  our  at  all  times  miserable 
fire. 

The  interval  of  my  delay  was  unmarked  by  any 
incident :  except  that  M'Tse,  who  was  immediately 
informed  of  my  return,  sent  one  night  to  ask  that 
Selim  might  be  allowed  to  remain,  as  he  wished  to 
send  him  to  bring  a  white  man  then  at  Ujiji.  The 
Ugunda  go  frequently  to  that  place,  making  the 
journey  in  ten  days.  I  supposed  the  white  man 
to  be  Lieutenant  Cameron,  as  it  afterwards  proved 
to  be.  Of  course  I  could  not  accede  to  this 
request,  under  the  circumstances. 

On  the  12th  I  went  to  pay  another  visit  to  the 
king,  to  repeat  my  thanks  and  kindly  appreciation 
of  the  services  he  had  and  would  render  me.  On 
returning  to  my  "  Zeriba,"  I  found  a  quantity  of 
cow,  leopard,  and  rat  skins  most  beautifully  tanned 
and  sewed  together,  making  large  sheets.  There 
were  ten  large  ivory  tusks,  and  many  other 
articles  of  jewelry,  necklaces  and  bracelets  made 
of   ivory,    and    ten  large  bolts  of    native    cloth. 


PREPARATIONS   TO    START.  135 

The  transportation  througli  Unyoro  of  the  ivory 
and  cloth  and  many  other  articles  that  I  was 
obliged  to  leave  (and  which  I  received  several 
months  afterwards  by  the  route  of  Unyoro),  cost 
him  in  slain  forty  of  his  men.  This  is  cited  here 
to  show  the  good  faith  of  M'Tse,  in  his  promise 
to  me  to  throw  his  ivory  in  the  market,  by  sending 
it  to  Gondokoro  :  or  at  least  to  Foueira,  near  by,  if 
the  river,  heretofore  unknown,  proved  to  be  the 
same  as  at  Foueira,  and  navigable,  the  point  on 
which  I  insisted  and  was  about  to  test. 


CHAPTER   XT. 

Start  for  the  Lake  Victoria  Nyanza — Mnrchison  Creek — De- 
scription of  the  boats — Land  for  the  Night — Nogarah  — 
Tlie  Fleet — Waters  of  the  Lake — Soundings — Islands  in 
the  Lake — M'Tse  gives  secret  instructions  not  to  cross 
the  Lake — I  reluctantly  return  to  Murchison  Creek — Dis- 
cover Selim — Attacked  with  fever — Baulked  by  Ba  Beker 
— I  make  preparations  to  depart  for  Foueira. 

On  the  morning  of  the  14th,  though  misty,  cold, 
and  disagreeable,  I  started  for  the  Lake  Victoria 
Nyanza,  accompanied  by  Said  and  Abd-el-Rahman, 
and  Selim  as  Sa'is.  Kellerman  and  Adam  were 
to  go  on  the  following  morning  direct  to  TJron- 
dogani ;  where  I  proposed  to  join  them,  coming 
from  the  lake.  I  hoped  at  least  to  explore  it  as 
far  as  its  eastern  shore. 

The  road  winds  through  banana  groves,  climbs 
steep  hills  or  plunges  into  umbrageous  forests. 
A  three  hours'  march  brought  us  to  a  little  bayou 
at  the  head  of  the  lake — the  Murchison  Creek  of 
Speke. 

From  the  top  of  the  hill  that  overlooks  Murchi- 
son Creek,  the  Lake  Victoria  beyond  lies  with  its 


THE    UGUNDi   FLEET.  137 

tranquil  and  limpid  waters  like  a  silver  sheen ;  re- 
fracting a  flood  of  light,  glistening  in  a  mid-day's 
sun.  The  shores  of  the  creek  are  bordered  with 
huge  trees,  whose  overhanging  branches  cast 
their  shadows  far  out  upon  the  mirrored  surface ; 
whilst  its  transparent  waters  reflected  the  now 
cloud-specked  sky. 

We  found  several  huts  near  the  water's  edge 
that  gave  us  shelter.  The  Mtongoli,  charged  with 
my  navigation  of  the  lake,  after  a  long  parley 
assembled  fifteen  boats  ;  promising  on  the  morrow 
as  many  more.  The  Mtongoli  insisted  that  my 
proposed  journey  was  impossible.  He  said  to 
me,  "  It  will  take  you  thirty  days  to  cross  to  the 
other  side,  and  beside  I  will  not  go."  I  determined 
however,  to  risk  it :  and  persuade,  if  possible,  the 
men  to  accompany  me.  I  accordingly  told  Selim 
to  await  me  with  the  horse  four  days ;  and  if  at 
the  end  of  that  time  I  did  not  return,  to  go  back 
to  M'Tse,  and  thence  make  his  way  to  Urondogani 
and  there  await  me  with  the  others.  Selim  knew 
that  my  project  was  useless,  and  that  the  Ugundi 
would  not  accompany  me. 

At  five  o'clock,  accompanied  by  Said  and  Abd- 
el-Rahman,  I  embarked  in  the  boats,  that  deserve 
description.  Composed  of  thick  bark,  sewed 
together  with  rope  made  of  banana-tree,  they  vary 
from  thirty  to  forty  feet  in  length,  having  at  the 
prow  the  antlers  of  a  "tetel"  or  deer;  propelled 
by  thirty  or  even   forty    rowers,   two    by   two. 


138  CENTEAL   AFEICA. 

the  speed  attained  is  wonderful :  whilst  the  effect 
is  that  of  a  strange  phantom  sea-monster,  as  it 
glides  noiselessly  over  the  even  surface  of  the  lake. 
The  Mtongoli  (who  proved  to  be  the  admiral  of 
the  Lake  naval  force)  conducted  us  several  hours 
of  rowing  to  a  point  on  the  eastern  shore  of  the 
creek  near  the  lake,  where  we  were  to  spend  the 
night ;  and  early  on  the  morrow  to  get  out  upon 
the  lake,  when  I  hoped  to  cross  it.  Our  camp 
was  npon  a  high  bluff,  where  not  far  away  there 
were  several  huts,  that  we  were  to  occupy  for  the 
night.  A  cheerful  fire  soon  made,  the  Sheik  of 
the  place  brought  us  a  "  koko  "  (chicken),  of  vrhich, 
aided  by  Said,  I  made  a  broth.  Tired  and  worn  out 
by  the  fatigue  of  the  day,  we  wrapped  ourselves  in 
blankets,  and  around  the  fire  fell  into  a  sound 
sleep  such  as  I  had  not  enjoyed  for  many  long 
days.  A  strange  restlessness  pursued  me  always  at 
night ;  and  the  only  sleep  I  could  get,  was  generally 
after  a  long  day's  march,  immediately  after  bivouac. 
The  morning  of  the  15th,  dawned  bright  and 
clear.  The  sound  of  "  Nogarah,"  drum  and  horn, 
awoke  me  just  as  the  sun  appeared :  out  upon  the 
creek  a  fleet  of  boats  came  "  neck  and  neck,"  with 
their  "tetel" -headed  prows,  to  the  number  of  forty, 
with  thirty  oars  in  each :  to  say  nothing  of 
drummers  and  musicians,  making  1200  men  that 
had  been  detailed  to  escort  me.  The  discordant 
din  broke  over  the  unrufEed  surface  of  the  water, 
re-echoed  again  and  again  by  the  surrounding  hills. 


LAKE    VIOTOEIA  NYANZA.  139 

"  Childe  Harold  at  a  little  distance  stood, 
And  view'd,  but  not  displeased,  the  revelry 
Nor  hated  harpaless  mirth,  however  rude  ; 
lu  sooth,  it  Avas  no  vulgar  sight  to  see 
Their  barbarous,  yet  their  not  indecent  glee." 

For  the  first  time  I  felt  sometliing  akin  to 
enthusiasm,  as  I  looked  down  from  my  seat  on 
the  overhanging  bank.  The  grey  mists  of  morn- 
ing were  being  tinged  with  a  golden  light  as  the 
sun  struggled  to  appear,  —  the  creek  with  its 
dark  fringe  of  trees  and  banana  groves,  lent  a 
beauty  to  the  scene  that  one  sees  seldom  in 
Central  Africa ;  but  to  be  frank  there  was  nothing 
grand,  nothing  to  cause  those  effusions  so  com- 
monly indulged  in  by  travellers  who  draw  fancy 
pictures.  An  hour  later,  every  preparation  had 
been  made,  and  after  much  yelling  and  screaming 
for  the  honour  of  having  me  on  board,  the 
squadron  pushed  ofi";  splashing  and  dashing  the 
water  in  continued  spray,  as  each  one  sought  to 
pass  the  other  in  furious  race. 

The  waters  were  clear,  transparent,  and  icy 
cold.  With  what  pleasure  I  leaned  over  the 
side,  and  bathed  my  aching  feverish  head  as  we 
rushed  along,  or  drank  deeply  of  what  seemed 
nectar  to  me.  We  had  now  reached  the  lake, 
that  glistened  like  a  great  mirror  in  the  burn- 
ing sun.  After  several  hours  of  paddling, 
always  at  a  very  rapid  pace,  we  arrived  at  a 
small  islet  on  the  west  side,  where  we  encamped 


140  CENTEAL   AFRICA. 

for  tlie  night.  During  the  day,  I  had  sonnded 
frequently,  and  had  found  from  forty  to  fifty 
feet  of  water :  and  there  seemed  no  percep- 
tible tide,  and  no  shells  upon  its  banks.  I 
had  designed  to  solve  this  question,  and  also 
to  pass  to  the  other  side,  and  determine  its 
width,  or  its  unity  as  one  lake,  or  an  assemblage 
of  little  lakes,  as  claimed  by  others  in  opposition  to 
Speke.  Notwithstanding  the  persistence  of  my 
Mtongoli,  that  the  lake  was  wide  and  would  take 
a  month  to  cross,  I  pointed  out  to  him  what  I 
deemed  a  coast-line,^  the  opposite  shore;  strength- 
ened in  my  belief  by  what  Colonel  Grant  had 
cited  from  Sadi,  an  Arab  traveller,  who  had  seen 
what  he  supposed  a  mountain,  from  the  opposite 
side.  Under  this  impression,  and  knowing  that 
the  lake  had  never  been  visited  either  by  Speke 
or  Grant,  and  that  the  map  of  the  former  was 
purely  imaginative,  made  on  report  of  the  na- 
tives, I  was  convinced  that  the  lake  had  not 
the  width  given  it  by  Speke.  The  consciousness 
that  I  was  the  only  white  man  who  had  ever 
been  upon  the  lake,  determined  me,  on  the  follow- 
ing morning,  to  make  every  efi'ort  to  cross  to 
the  other  side.  In  vain  I  coaxed  the  Mtongoli ; 
he  laughed  at  me  and  said,  "If  there   were  no 

*  The  subsequent  exploration  of  Stanley  in  April,  1875,  ten 
months  after,  has  proved  that  the  land  that  gave  me  the 
impression  of  a  coast-line  was,  in  fact,  a  chain  of  islands,  of" 
which  the  lake  is  full. 


I    EETURN   TO    MUKOHISON   CEEEK.  141 

devils  there,  our  boats  could  not  go,  for  sometimes 
the  lake  is  not  so  tranquil  as  to-day."  I  offered 
him  presents,  and  promised  to  give  him  my  gun, 
but  all  to  no  avail.  He  simply  replied,  "  We  will 
not  go."  I  was  therefore  obliged  to  resign  my- 
self to  this  decree.  Weak  and  in  almost  a  dying 
condition,  the  mere  attempt  to  break  away  from 
this  escort,  to  push  alone  to  what  I  deemed  a  solu- 
tion of  the  Lake  Question,  savoured  of  folly  :  and  I 
was  thus  obliged  to  return.  M'Tse,  fearful  that  I 
might  die  in  the  attempt,  had  secretly  instructed 
his  men  not  to  take  me  across  the  lake ;  but  in 
everything  else  to  obey  my  orders.  The  day  was 
spent  in  racing  about,  continually  sounding,  and 
mth  same  result  as  on  preceding  day.  At  mid- 
day, I  gave  the  order  to  return,  and  about  sunset 
reached  the  embouchure  of  Murchison  Creek,  near 
which  a  huge  rock  rears  its  head,  upon  whose 
summit  a  mass  of  birds  and  gulls  were  perched. 
Irritated  and  angered  at  the  result,  and  what  I 
deemed  the  bad  faith  of  my  Mtongoh,  I  stopped 
the  boat  and  vented  my  spleen  upon  the  birds, 
which  I  killed  in  great  numbers,  to  the  astonish- 
ment of  the  Ugundi.  No  less  shocked  than  the 
birds  must  have  been  the  echoes  of  the  lake,  never 
before  awakened  to  the  whizz  of  ball  and  roar  of  gun. 
I  filled  a  bottle^  with  the  water  from  the  Lake 

'  This  bottle  of  water  of  the  Lake  Victoria  was  sent  to  his 
Highness  the  Khedive,  on  my  arrival  at  Khartoum,  several 
months  afterwards. 


142  CENTRAL   APEICA. 

secretly,  for  I  feared  tliat  the  superstitious  Ugundi 
would  prevent  me.  The  sun  had  sunk  like  a 
globe  of  fire  in  the  bosom  of  the  lake,  when 
warned  by  the  fast  approaching  night  we  sought 
the  nearest  shore,  made  a  fire,  and  feasted  upon 
roasted  bananas,  to  which  I  added  a  gourd  of 
coffee  made  from  the  berry  of  the  country.  The 
Ugundi,  by-the-bye,  never  make  a  decoction  of 
coffee,  but  chew  the  grain  raw.  This  is  a  general 
custom  there  :  having  plenty  of  wood  we  made  a 
roaring  fire,  and  soon  fell  asleep  around  its  grateful 
blaze. 

At  an  early  hour  of  the  16th,  accompanied  by  my 
numerous  escort,  we  embarked ;  and,  after  a  long 
pull,  we  arrived  at  the  head  of  Murchison  Creek, 
that  I  had  quitted  the  14th  inst.  at  midday.  I  found 
Selim  there  surrounded  by  women  and  "  merissa," 
quite  a  beau,  and  having  great  success  among  the 
Ugunda  girls,  and  I  regretted  for  a  moment  to 
disturb  the  "  dolce  far  niente  "  of  his  life,  though 
he  would  doubtless  have  forgotten  me  had  I  suc- 
ceeded in  pushing  my  way  through  to  Urondo 
gani  via  the  river.  For  several  hours  I  was 
unable  to  proceed,  owing  to  a  violent  attack  of 
fever  and  dysentery.  However,  about  three  o'clock 
I  put  myself  in  saddle,  and  reached  my  "  Zeriba  " 
at  sunset.  Kellerman  and  Adam  were  still  there, 
for  Ba  Beker,  during  my  absence,  had  left  the 
camp,  and  apparently  deserted  them  ;  it  was  there- 
fore  fortunate    that    I    was    obliged   to  return : 


DEPART   FOR   FOUEIRA.  143 

otherwise   they   would   perhaps   never   have  left 
Ugunda. 

The  17th  and  18th  were  spent  in  preparations 
for  departure,  baulked  on  all  sides  by  the  wily  Ba 
Beker.  A  special  messenger,  however,  to  M'Tse, 
asking  his  immediate  aid,  procured  for  me  the 
requisite  porters,  and  a  Mtongoli  to  conduct  me 
direct  to  Urondogani :  the  point  from  which  I 
hoped  to  return  via  the  river  to  Foueira,  should 
the  river  permit ;  a  point  from  which  Speke  had 
been  driven  by  hostile  tribes,  and  which  even 
M'Tse  assured  me  made  no  connexion  with  the 
river  at  Foueira.  This  had  long  been  a  blank  in 
geographical  knowledge :  and  as  it  was  still  a 
subject  of  doubt  whether  the  Lakes  Victoria  and 
Albert  Nyanza  joined  each  other,  I  determined  at 
every  risk  to  brave  the  hazard,  though  failure 
might  cost  me  my  life,  as  well  as  the  lives  of  my 
companions. 


CHAPTER   XII. 

Presents  from.  M'Tse — Depart  from  Ugunda — The  climate  of 
the  Eqnatoi- — Hostility  of  the  Mtongoli  and  his  men  — 
Desertion  of  the  escort — I  complain  to  M'Tse  and  recover 
some  of  my  luggage — Our  marches  continually  interrupted 
by  deluges  of  rain — Dense  forests — A  Marsalah  brings 
me  food — Arrival  at  Urondogani — A  Mtongoli  presents 
me  with  eight  young  ladies  from  M'Tse — Three  of  them 
marry  my  Soldiers — M'Tse  daughter  of  King  M'Tse — 
Punishment  of  Ibrahim — Marches  by  the  river — Head- 
quarters of  the  Admiral  of  the  River  Fleet — Hospitalities 
— My  horse  Ugunda — Present  remaining  young  ladies  to 
the  faithful  Mtongoli — Retain  the  boys — Selim. 

July  19i/i.— At  an  early  hour  tlie  porters  assem- 
bled in  great  numbers.  The  little  baggage  1 
possessed  consisted  of  a  few  iron  cases,  that  had 
contained  presents  to  M'Tse,  and  a  few  rags  that  I 
called  my  clothes  :  and,  not  to  offend  the  king,  the 
presents  of  skins  that  he  had  offered  me.  The 
presents  of  ivory  tusks  and  other  articles  were 
left  with  Ba  Beker,  that  he  might  forward  them 
to  Foueira  by  the  first  convoy  of  ivory,  that  was 
now  continually  to  be  sent  forward.  I  had 
arranged  with  M'Tse  that  he  should  send  me  by 
the  land  route  a  quantity  of  cattle  and  provisions 
at  Mrooli  there  to  await  my  passage  by  the  river. 
Bidding  adieu  then  to  Uganda  and  its  hospi- 


CLIMATE    OF   THE   EQUATOR.  145 

table  king,  I  left  my  Zeriba,  so  weak  and  ema- 
ciated that  my  two  soldiers  were  obliged  to  aid 
me  in  mounting ;  Uganda  becoming  fat  and  fret- 
ful upon  bis  banana  regime  that  had  well-nigh 
killed  his  master.  As  we  quitted  Ugunda  M'Tse 
appeared  at  his  palace-gate,  surrounded  by  his 
hareem ;  a  blast  of  horns  and  a  sound  of  drums 
signalled  my  departure  as  we  quitted  for  ever  our 
Zeriba,  where  thirty  days  of  most  eventful 
existence  had  been  spent.  The  route,  as  heretofore 
described,  lay  over  ravine  and  slough,  from  which 
the  foulest  odours  arose;  and  through  which 
Ugunda  with  difficulty  succeeded  in  forcing  his 
way.  The  day  was  a  stormy  one,  and  added  in 
misery  and  cold  to  the  difficulties  of  the  journey. 

A  strange  misconception  exists  as  to  the  real 
climate  of  the  Equator;  and  may  be  briefly  cor- 
rected here.  Rain  and  humidity  are  the  chronic 
condition  of  the  whole  of  Central  Africa.  The 
month  of  April  alone  affords  a  slight  respite, 
during  which  time  the  heat  is  excessive,  but  the 
nights  are  always  cold;  the  scarcity  of  wood 
rendering  the  natives  really  miserable  at  night. 
During  other  months  incessant  rains  fall ;  the  days 
are  damp  and  humid,  but  the  nights  are  very  cold. 
When,  however,  the  sun  breaks  through  the 
clouds  its  rays  are  almost  insupportable.  On  the 
east  coast,  on  the  equatorial  line,  the  seasons  are 
affected  by  the  monsoon  winds  that  blow  north- 
east, and  south-west,  for  the  six  months  of  the 
year  :    a  dry  wind  and  a  wet  wind.     Tlie  former 


146  CENTRAL   AFRICA. 

may  be  supported  by  tlie  European :  but  the  latter 
is  the  precursor  of  all  diseases,  and  specially  of  con- 
sumption, to  which  the  native  Soumali  is  a  victim. 

To  resume :  after  a  march  of  five  hours  and 
a  half  we  encamp,  cold  and  miserable.  It  was 
here  that  I  was  made  aware  of  the  enmity  of  the 
Mtongoli,  charged  with  my  safe  conduct  to  the 
river.  His  malevolence  and  the  hostility  of  his 
men,  were  no  longer  under  control  of  M'Tse, 
and  they  seemed  determined  to  revenge  upon  me 
the  friendship  their  king  had  persistently  extended 
to  me.  I  quote  from  my  itinerary,  the  better  to 
show  the  misery  to  which  I  was  subjected  during 
twelve  days  to  Urondogani,  to  reach  which  only 
three  days  should  have  been  required. 

July  20tJi. — At  five  o'clock  I  arouse  my  soldiers, 
who  in  turn  endeavour  to  incite  the  Mtongoli  and 
men  to  depart.  An  hour  after  they  arrive  in 
confusion,*  and  the  time  till  eight  a.m.  is  occupied 
in  cries  and  hideous  noise.  To  cite  a  case  :  there 
stand  two  Ugundi,  quarrelling  over  their  right 
to  a  box,  claimed  by  both  parties,  as  carried 
yesterday.  An  hour  passes — still  the  same  scene: 
when  finally  one  submits,  and  sullenly  leaves  the 
case  to  the  claimant,  who  now  relinquishing  his 
claim,  goes  to  another  to  repeat  the  same  history. 
Impossible  to  move  them.  About  two  p.m.  a 
fearful  storm  falls  upon  the  now  scattered  column; 
a  terrible  pelting  rain,  through  which  we  march 
till  sunset.  With  the  exception  of  five  or  six 
Ugundi,  detailed  to  wait  upon  me  expressly  by 


DESERTION   OF  THE   ESCOET.  147 

M'Tse,  there  is  not  a  sign  of  our  baggage  or  escort. 
Fortunately,  in  tlie  grove  of  bananas  several 
friendly  huts,  deserted  by  tlieir  occupants,  invite  us 
to  shelter.  Half  famished  and  cold,  we  quietly 
make  a  fire  with  the  dry  wood  from  within  :  and 
soon,  in  that  common  brotherhood  of  misery,  we 
are  gathered  around  the  fire,  eating  our  now 
habitual  food,  bananas.  Selim  occupies  with  his 
wives  the  hut  close  by  with  "Ugunda."  During 
the  night  I  had  a  most  violent  attack  of  nephritic 
colic,  due  to  the  bad  water  to  which  we  were  now 
compelled  to  have  recourse.  The  morning  dawned 
to  find  only  the  same  Ugundi  that  had  accom- 
panied us.  Of  the  two  hundred  escort  of  honour 
not  one  had  reported  himself :  and  besides  all 
baggage  and  clothing,  whether  mine  or  belonging 
to  my  soldiers,  were  missing.  I  sent  an  Ugunda 
secretly  to  complain  to  M'Tse.  Four  days  went 
by :  condemned  to  inaction,  a  prey  to  fevers  and 
dysentery.  My  men  also  suffered  severely  from  the 
former.  In  those  moments  I  cursed  the  African 
for  his  hypocrisy  and  deceit,  and  unjustly  perhaps, 
attributed  to  M'Tse  the  ills  I  suffered:  though  Ba 
Beker,  as  I  afterwards  learned,  was  at  the  bottom 
of  the  conspiracy  against  my  reaching  the  river. 

On  the  morning  of  the  24th,  when  I  had  already 
seriously  contemplated  making  my  way  alone 
through  the  almost  impenetrable  cane-brake  and 
jungle-grass  that  lined  the  way,  a  messenger 
Mtongoli,  arrived  from  M'Tse,  who  sent  word  to 
me  that  he  would  regain  my  baggage,  and  kill  the 


148  CENTRAL    AFEICA. 

individuals  engaged  in  my  maltreatment.  I  hesi- 
tated to  denounce  Ba  Beker  (and  thus  more  than 
probably  cause  his  execution)  because  of  the  ser- 
vice he  had  previously  rendered  me. 

Fortunately  among  several  articles  stolen,  and 
now  recovered,  were  my  overcoat  and  my  notes. 
The  loss  of  the  former  would  have  been  irrepa- 
rable, as  the  nights  v/ere  now  excessively  cold ; 
sensibility  to  which  was  augmented  by  my  weak 
and  emaciated  condition.  After  a  great  parley 
with  the  Mtongoli,  a  march  was  ordered,  which 
lasted  only  half  an  hour !  Threats  to  report  to 
M'Tse  availed  me  nothing;  and  I  was  obliged  to 
encamp  upon  various  pretexts. 

The  25th,  26th,  and  27th  were  passed  in  insig- 
nificant marches,  that  were  made  to  wait  upon  the 
deluges  of  rain  that  fell,  and  the  illness  of  my  men, 
who  surrendered  helplessly  to  attacks  of  jungle 
fever.  I  had  become  so  accustomed  to  them 
myself,  that  after  two  hours  of  chill  and  fever. 
I  was  able,  by  a  great  effort  made  upon  my  energy 
to  resume  the  route. 

On  the  29th,  en  route  at  eight  a.m.:  a  march  of 
four  hours  was  made.  The  jungle-grass  was  at 
least  twenty  feet  high.  At  one  p.m.  a  storm,  the 
most  terrible  I  had  ever  witnessed,  broke  over  our 
heads,  accompanied  by  flashes  of  lightning  that  in 
their  vividness  nearly  blinded  every  one,  and  left 
the  scarcely  perceptible  path  almost  invisible  in 
the  succeeding  gloom.  We  were  compelled  to 
bivouac  in  a  banana  grove,  from  whence,  on  the 


DENSE   FOEESTS.  149 

following  morning,  the  road  ran  tbrougli  great 
dark  forests,  that  at  midday  even  obscured  the 
rays  of  the  sun,  and  whose  perpetual  shades 
re-echoed  alone  the  hoot  of  the  owl,  and  cries  of 
monkeys  and  parrots,  that  abound  in  great  num- 
bers here.  In  this  frightful  gloom  of  forest,  and 
in  the  close  companionship  of  beasts,  that  ever 
and  anon,  whether  elephant,  lion,  or  leopard, 
crossed  our  path,  I  said  to  myself, — Here,  indeed, 
is  the  Africa  of  my  boyish  fancy !  a  hell  on  earth, 
whose  rich  vegetation  and  flowers,  like  the  upas 
tree,  breathe  poison  and  death !  Scattered  here 
and.  there  over  this  dark,  silent  forest  road,  were 
human  skulls;  in  fact,  every  member  of  the  human 
body,  belonging  to  the  wretches  that  had  been  sacri- 
ficed to  prevent  my  further  progress  :  to  deter  me 
from  leaving  Ugunda  !  What  talisman,  other  than 
the  friendship  of  M'Tse,  I  possessed  to  save  me 
from  a  like  fate,  I  could  not  tell :  unless  it  were 
that  natural  instinct  that  seems  to  acknowledge 
the  supremacy  of  the  white  man,  and  the  strange 
capricious  nature  which  a  long  experience  and  study 
taught  me  to  turn  to  account,  where  another  less 
skilled,  had  perhaps  paid  the  forfeit  of  his  life. 

On  the  31st,  a  "  Marsalah  "  arrived  at  night 
with  friendly  salutations  from  M'Tse,  bringing  me 
a  milch-cow  and  a  sheep;  the  latter  was  slain 
immediately,  and  my  nearly  famished  suite  sat  up 
nearly  all  night  feasting  like  wolves. 

August  1st. — After  passing  a  small  stream,  we 
arrive  at  half- past  one  o'clock  of  the  afternoon  at 


150  CENTEAL   AFRICA. 

Urondogani,  the  river  boat  station  of  tlie  TJgunda 
shore.  Here  we  bivouacked  in  close  proximity 
to  the  river,  the  murmur  of  whose  waters  as  they 
rushed  over  "  shallals  "  (rocks),  soothed  the  fierce 
but  impotent  flood  of  anger,  that  had  surged  in 
my  breast  since  my  departure,  the  19th,  from 
M'Tse  :  because  it  seemed  to  mark  the  pei^iod 
of  my  dependence  upon  these  negroes,  who  had 
doubtless  prolonged  the  route  by  an  indirect  march 
through  forests  and  jungle-grass,  that  alike  hid 
from  view  the  sun  and  the  direction. 

On  the  following  morning  the  Mtongoli  told  me, 
that  "  there  were  no  boats:  and  consequently  that 
I  must  wait."  I  went  down  to  the  river,  and  found 
two  large  "  dug  outs  "  that  gladdened  my  heart ; 
for  I  secretly  determined,  if  no  longer  victimized 
by  the  unwilling  Mtongoli,  to  burn  my  baggage 
and  take  these  boats ;  knowing  full  well  that  they 
could  not  take  them  below  the  "  shallals,"  south. 

On  the  3rd,  whilst  preparing  to  put  in  execu- 
tion the  burning  of  the  little  baggage  that  M'Tso 
had  caused  to  be  returned  to  me,  a  messenger 
arrived  from  M'Tse,  bringing  another  Mtongoli, 
with  orders  to  procure  me  boats  similar  to  thosc^ 
upon  the  lake,  that  I  might  the  more  easily 
descend  the  river.  Then  the  Mtongoli  came 
forward,  and  presented  me  with  eight  handsome 
girls,  young  ladies  from  ten  to  twenty  years  of 
age,  all  entirely  nude — their  clothing  had  evidently 
been  appropriated  en  route  by  the  Mtongoli  charged 
with  their  presentation — one  of  these  was  a  very 


PRESENTS    OF   YOUNG    LADIES    FROM    m'tSE.       151 

pretty  little  girl,  daughter  of  M'Tse,  given  as  a 
special  proof  of  the  friendship  he  had  for  me. 
This  girl,  in  form  and  feature  the  very  picture  of 
her  father  M'Tse,  has  been  placed  at  school  in 
Cairo,  where  she  now  is — one  boy  of  twelve  years 
of  age,  and  two  little  ones  quite  small  babes 
scarcely  able  to  walk.  Here  was  an  unlooked  for 
dilemma ;  to  refuse  to  accept  them  was  to  offend 
African  etiquette,  and  more  than  all,  brave  the 
anger  of  a  man  to  whose  courtesy  and  kindness  I 


m'tse,  daughter  of  einq-  m'tse. 

owed  my  life.  It  was  not  to  be  thought  of  for  a 
moment.  I  sent  a  message  to  M'Tse  expressing 
my  great  thanks.  This  present  was  a  God-send 
to  me ;  for  so  long  as  I  could  reward  my  Mtongoli 
I  should  have  a  devoted  servant;  and  my  intention 
was  to  give  them  to  that  one  who  should  aid 
me  most.  Three  of  these  young  ladies  (quite 
pretty  by-the-bye)  begged  to  be  permitted  to  be 
the  wives  of  my  three  soldiers;  the  rest  I  decided 
to  retain  until  I  should  be  ready  to  embark.     The 


152  CENTEAL    AFEICA. 

joy  of  Said,  Abd-el,  and  Selim  knew  no  bounds, 
and  a  great  "  merissali "  fantasiah,  and  dance  by 
the  light  of  the  moon  in  our  banana  grove  habita- 
tion, marked  the  event. 

There  was  only  one  alloy  to  all  this  :  both  Said 
and  4bd-el  were  nearly  naked  :  their  highly  prized 
uniforms  had  been  stolen  with  my  effects,  and  Abd- 
el,  the  more  sensitive  of  the  two,  wept  bitterly. 

M'Tse  it  seems  had  been  greatly  enraged  at  the 
robbery  and  bad  treatment  of  myself  by  one  of 
the  "  Mtongoli,"  who  had  been  named  by  our  men 
"  Ibrahim,"  for  it  was  really  he,  who,  perhaps  in 
concert  with  Ba  Beker,  had  connived  at  the 
whole  affair :  had  retarded  my  arrival  at  Urondo- 
gani,  robbed  me  of  my  effects,  and  even  sacrificed 
his  own  men,  and  thrown  their  mutilated  bodies 
in  my  path  to  frighten  me  from  my  purpose. 
"  Ibrahim "  had  been  seized,  and  ordered  to 
accompany  the  "  Mtongoli  "  to  my  camp,  "to  look 
upon  my  face  and  die."  I  did  not  know  this  at  the 
time,  or  perhaps  I  might  have  pleaded  for  him, 
though  he  richly  deserved  death.  There  was  much 
in  the  quick  retributive  justice  of  M'Tse,  that  led 
me  at  times  to  think,  that  not  all  of  the  execu- 
tions I  had  witnessed  had  been  made  with  only 
a  desire  to  show  his  authority:  for  the  Ugundi,  as 
a  rale,  were  ungovernable,  cowardly,  and  cruel. 

The  morning  of  the  5th  we  left  Urondogani, 
accompanied  by  my  Mtongoli,  who  induced  me 
to  follow  the  river,  with  the  idea  that  he  would 
find  more   suitable  boats.       Once  embarked,   he 


HEAD-QUARTERS   OP   THE   ADMIRAL.  153 

would  take  the  land  route,  in  company  with  Selim 
and  his  wives,  charged  with  my  horse,  and  reach- 
ing Mrooli,  there  await  my  coming  by  the  river ; 
or  if,  as  M'Tse  would  have  me  believe,  it  "  went 
to  the  devil,"  that  Selim  should  at  once  make  his 
way  to  Foueira,  and  there  report  the  fact.  This 
was  all  that  I  could  do,  to  anticipate  the  unfavour- 
able auguries  of  my  whole  force,  opposed  to  the 
idea  of  returning  by  the  river.  M'Tse  promised 
me  that  his  men  should  be  in  waiting  for  me  at 
Mrooli,  where  I  hoped  to  come  out  by  the  river. 

We  followed  the  river  through  banana  groves 
and  over  prairies  tenanted  by  great  herds  of 
elephant  and  buffalo,  that  often  crossed  our 
path,  and  who  had  grazed  down  the  grass,  that 
everywhere  else  in  this  country  obstructs  the 
view,  and  renders  passage  sometimes  impossible 
without  the  bayonet  and  the  knife.  From  the 
route  we  were  in  full  view  of  the  river,  that  now 
and  then  showed  a  boulder  of  rock  above  its  sur- 
face, but  navigable.  At  midday,  after  a  brisk 
march  of  several  miles,  the  column  headed  by 
the  Mtongoli  with  a  numerous  retinue,  entered 
a  wide  square  where  floated  the  Ugunda  flag, 
surrounded  by  a  mass  of  men  with  music,  drums, 
and  horns.  This  was  the  head-quarters  of  the 
admiral  commanding;  the  river  fleet.  He  came  to 
see  me,  accompanied  by  his  men,  offered  me  a  nice 
hut,  and  told  me  that  on  the  morrow  four  boats 
should  be  placed    at  my  disposal.      He  further 

sent  me  a  "  Koko,"  a  great  many  bunches  of  ripe 

M 


154  CENTRAL   AFRICA. 

bananas  and  plantains,  and  several  jars  of  the 
highlj  prized  "  merissa."  "  Ugunda,"  during  all 
the  rigours  of  this  route,  had  been  my  faithful 
bearer  and  companion.  At  night,  fearful  that 
some  accident  might  happen  to  him,  the  door  of 
the  hut  was  enlarged  in  order  to  admit  and 
protect  him  from  the  storms,  that  almost  always 
commenced  at  five  o'clock  in  the  afternoon,  and 
raged  all  night:  or  the  attacks  of  lion  and  leopard, 
that  roared  and  ramped  around  the  hut.  I  seldom 
slept  at  night :  but  with  pipe  in  mouth  have  sat 
for  hours  with  no  companion  save  "  Ugunda," 
who  lay  stretched  at  my  feet :  dreaming  doubtless 
of  the  time  when  he  should  return  to  more  whole- 
some food  than  bananas :  or  awakened  by  the  howl 
of  the  leopard  without,  he  would  start  with  fear, 
and  lay  his  head  on  me  as  if  for  protection. 

August  6th. — An  unusually  fearful  storm  pre- 
vailed since  the  previous  night,  and  we  remained  in 
camp  all  day.  My  two  little  infant  children,  and 
the  remaining  young  ladies  heretofore  alluded  to, 
were  presented  to  the Mtongoli  chiefs  that  had  aided 
me  on  the  route.  It  was  impossible  to  bring  them 
with  me  :  and  this  was  the  only  thing  left  me  to  do. 
The  Mtongoli,  who  thus  increased  their  harem,  fell 
prostrate  and  yanzigged  for  at  least  half  an  hour 
in  token  of  their  gratitude.  The  boys  ^  and  the 
girl  M'Tse  I  decided  to  take  with  me,  as  they 
desired  to  go,   and  they  proved  very  useful  in 

^  The  Ugunda  boj  is  now  in  the  Egyptian  army  as  a  soldier 
at  the  arsenal. 


DELAY    OF    SELIM. 


155 


baling  the  boats,  rendered  continuously  necessary 
in  the  thirteen  subsequent   days   of  navigation  of 
the  river  by  their  leaky 
condition.      Four  boats 
had  been  procured   for 
me,  similar  to  those  al- 
ready   described   upon 
the  lake,  but  of  an  in- 
ferior quality.      I    had 
decided      that      Selim 
should  take   my  horse, 
and  with  the  Mtongoli 
follow  me  on  the  river 
side ;      and     when     no 
longer  able  to  do  so  pro- 
ceed direct   to    Mrooh, 
and  there  await  my  ar- 
rival.    To  anticipate,  it 
may  be  well  to  remark 
here  that  Selim,   when 
no  longer  able  to  follow 
me    along    the     shore, 
went  into  camp  with  my 
Ugunda  escort  near  by 
on  the  Unyoro  frontier,  ''"vov^T^^." 

ate  up  the  oxen  that  M'Tse  in  good  faith  had  sent 
me;  and  drunk  with  "merissa,"  thought  no  more 
of  Mrooh,  until  cattle  and  merissa  consumed  they 
struck  the  inland  route,  arriving  at  Foueira  thirty- 
nine  days  afterwards,  twenty-two  days  after  my 
arrival  there! 


CHAPTER  XIII. 

The  Descent  of  the  river — The  small-pox — Keba  Rega's  Boat 
— Desertion  of  my  Escort,  who  fear  to  advance  or  return — 
Panic  of  my  Staff — Instructions  to  Selim — We  start  again 
— Encountered  by  a  Storm  we  land  for  the  night — Flight 
of  Savages — Gebel  M'Tingi — Torrents  of  rain — Discover 
Lake  Ibrahim — Lilies — Papyrus  Jungles — Savages — Con- 
tinual Storms — Endeavour  to  find  the  Bed  of  the  River — 
The  Polar  Star,  our  beacon  of  safety — The  boats  filling 
with  water  we  are  in  great  danger — We  regain  the  river 
— We  are  compelled  to  land — Anxiety  to  meet  Selim. 

On  the  morning  of  the  7th,  accompanied  by 
Mtongoli,  all  in  the  four  boats  given  me,  I 
commenced  the  descent  of  the  river,  whilst  the 
escort  followed  on  the  high  banks  of  the  river 
which  here  had  assumed  a  bold  and  wide  character, 
a  few  rocks  rising  to  the  surface,  but  deep  and 
navigable  by  large  steamer.  I  had  the  intention 
of  constructing  a  raft  on  which  to  place  my  horse, 
rather  than  trust  Selim  with  him,  but  I  was 
obliged  to  abandon  altogether  that  idea,  as  the 
current  of  the  river  was  not  sufficiently  great  to 
carry  it  along  swiftly ;  and  besides  the  only  wood 
I  could  procure  had  not  sufficient  floating 
capacity.      The'  river   is    full   of  crocodiles   and 


KEBA   REGA's   boat.  157 

hippopotami:  and  geese,  ducks,  and  unknown  birds 
frequent  its  shores. 

The  still  malevolent  Mtongoli,  placed  in  my 
bark  two  of  their  men  festering  with  small-pox. 
This  disease,  as  elsewhere  in  Central  Africa  and 
to  the  west  of  the  Bahr-el-Abiad,  is  the  common 
pest  of  the  country.  Ba  Baker  had  in  the  first 
days  of  this  expeditiou  endeavoured  to  cause  me 
to  catch  this  loathsome  and  fatal  disease;  fatal 
here,  for  once  infected  the  savage  leaves  you 
with  a  morsel  of  bread  and  a  gourd  of  water,  far 
removed  from  any  habitation.  If  you  are  strong 
enough  to  overcome  the  disease,  starvation  then 
enhances  the  danger  of  your  situation.  Thou- 
sands thus  perish,  and  the  propagation  of  the 
disease  is  insured  by  the  fact  that  no  pre- 
cautions are  taken  to  disinfect  clothes,  or  even  to 
inter  the  corpse,  that  is  left  to  bleach  its  bones  in 
the  open  air. 

Scarcely  had  I  driven  these  men  from  my  boat 
and  caused  them  to  be  placed  with  the  Mtongoli, 
when  a  large  black  dug-out  canoe,  was  seen 
approaching,  heavily  laden  with  men.  The 
Mtongoli  turned  the  boats  towards  shore,  and 
quickly  landed.  In  reply  to  my  inquiry,  I  learned 
that  we  had  now  reached  neutral  ground  (place 
from  which  Speke  had  been  driven),  and  that  the 
boat  in  question  was  Keba  Rega's,  who  was  thus 
watching  the  river.  They  asked,  "  who  we  were, 
and  why  we  wanted  to  descend  the  river  ?  "     Re- 


158  CENTRAL   ATEICA. 

ceiving  no  satisfactory  reply,  they  turned  and 
left.  My  escort,  headed  by  the  Mtongoli,  now 
insisted  that  they  could  go  no  farther;  and 
declared  that  from  the  menacing  attitude  of  these 
men  we  had  just  seen,  I  should  surely  be  at- 
tacked, and  that  it  was  impossible  for  me  to  go 
on  by  the  river.  Selim  added  his  counsel,  and 
attempted  to  dissuade  me.  .Angered  beyond  en- 
durance at  this  desertion,  I  drew  my  revolver, 
and  drove  the  whole  mass  of  them,  now  200  in 
all,  like  a  flock  of  sheep  flying  up  the  bank,  and 
into  the  thick  banana  groves.  Kellerman  here 
too  lost  heart,  and  I  told  him,  "  You  may  go 
with  Selim,  I  should  only  be  too  happy  to  get 
rid  of  you.  As  for  me  it  is  an  affair  of  Scylla  and 
Charybdis,  and  I  really  hope  you  will  not  follow 
me,  but  if  you  do — no  more  impertinence,  but  try 
and  aid  me  for  once  in  your  life,  or  it  will  be 
worse  for  you.  I  am  determined  to  navigate  and 
explore  the  river  to  Foueira  or  to  Hades ! ' '  Finally, 
a  Mtongoli  came  back,  and  said  he  would  send  to 
Namjongoz,  for  permission  from  the  Sheik  there 
to  descend  the  river;  promising  that  he  would 
bring  an  auswer  on  the  morrow.  I  consented  to 
this ;  and  quickly  debarking  my  poor  tent,  I  soon 
pitched  it  on  the  bank,  hauling  after  me  the 
boats,  and  securing  them  to  the  pickets  of  my 
tent.  Selim  came  acting  as  envoy  from  the 
Mtongoli :  they  feared  to  return  to  M'Tse,  lest  their 
heads  should  pay  the  penalty  of  the  non-execution 


INSTEUCTIONS   TO    SELIM.  159 

of  his  orders  to  go  to  Mrooli :  and  tliey  feared 
as  well  to  go  there,  on  account  of  the  Keba 
Rega :  a  fear  too  well  grounded,  though  at  that 
time  I  accused  them  of  childish  timidity. 

The  8th  was  spent  in  assorting  my  fortunately 
good  stock  of  cartridges,  explosive  and  non- 
explosive  balls.  My  stock  of  rations  was  exceed- 
ing low;  I  had  only  five  pounds  of  flour,  and 
five  pounds  of  beans,  to  which  was  added  one 
sheep,  and  a  quantity  of  green  bananas.  My 
party  then  consisted  of  myself.  Said  and  Abd-el- 
Rahman,  Kellerman  and  Adam,  and  three  chil- 
dren, eight  mouths  to  feed.  I  hoped  however  to 
reach  Mrooli,  and  there,  as  arranged,  to  draw 
rations  from  the  Ugunda  escort.  To  Selim,  I 
renewed  my  instructions,  telling  him  "  that  after 
waiting  four  days  at  Mrooli,  if  he  should  not  hear 
my  gun  as  a  signal  of  arrival,  he  should  hasten* 
to  the  Military  Post  at  Foueira,  and  report  me  a 
prisoner  to  Keba  Rega."  The  day  passed  without 
the  return  of  the  promised  messenger,  and  I  in- 
formed the  now  nervous  Mtongoli,  that  I  should 
leave  them  on  the  morrow.  I  guarded  well  my 
boats  that  night,  for  I  feared  these  wily  fellows 
would  steal  them  from  me ;  and  thus  compel  me 
to  encamp  with  them  or  return  to  M'Tse. 

On  the  following  morning  at  an  early  hour  my 
tent  was  struck,  and  packed  with  my  iron  cases 
(eight  of  which  had  been  returned  me  from  the 
stolen  lot)  in  the  boat,  taking  three  of  them  (two 


160  CENTRAL   AFRICA. 

in  tow)  we  left  tlie  bank  and  paddled  boldly  out  into 
the  stream.  Kellerman  was  sulky,  and  not  one 
word  of  sympathy  could  be  had  from  the  dejected 
countenances  of  all.  Selim  had  promised  me  that- 
he  would  leave  before  me.  So  much  for  the 
start.  With  the  exception  that  the  course  of  the 
river  gave  me  great  uneasiness,  for  they  claimed 
that  it  did  not  go  to  Mrooli,  but  eastward,  and 
that  I  should  be  attacked,  I  felt  a  great  relief  in 
being  deprived  of  the  presence  of  the  negroes,  that 
till  now  had  been  a  source  of  great  trouble  and 
annoyance  to  me.  Thrown  upon  my  own  re- 
sources, and  brought  face  to  face  with  peril,  from 
which  they  had  recoiled,  my  heart  grew  strong : 
and  the  first  attempt  at  gaiety,  to  which  I  had 
been  a  stranger,,  forced  its  way  to  my  lips  in  an 
outburst  of  song,  as  sitting  in  the  stern  of  the 
•boat  I  directed  the  course  paddling,  also  aided 
by  Said  and  Abd«el-Eahman,  whose  strength  and 
good  will  made  up  for  their  inexperience  in 
boating.  We  glided  along  until  five  o'clock  in  the 
afternoon,  when  an  approaching  storm  warned  us 
to  find  a  resting-place  for  the  night.  The  river 
had  now  become  broad  and  deep,  being  certainly 
300  yards  wide  and  thirty  to  forty  feet  deep. 

Save  here  and  there,  at  rare  intervals,  a  thick 
and  impenetrable  growth  of  papyrus  lined  its 
shores.  Near  by  we  discovered  a  path  made  in 
the  lily  that  bordered  the  shore,  and  entering  it 
found  the  land,  with  a  boat  (dug  out)  tied  to  a 


FLIGHT    OF    SAVAGES.  161 

stake,  and  filled  with  decayed  fish.  Ere  we  could 
land  the  storm  descended  in  great  fury.  We 
landed  the  tent,  and  after  much  trouble  in  the 
darkness  of  the  night,  aided  only  by  the  fitful 
flashes  of  lightning,  we  succeeded  in  pitching  it  by 
the  water's  edge.  Our  matches  were  wet,  and 
thus  we  were  without  a  fire.  Said  and  myself 
went  up  the  bank  and  espied  several  huts  in  close 
proximity,  and  pressed  by  cold  and  hunger  we 
made  our  way  stealthily  towards  them  in  the  hope 
of  finding  them  deserted.  A  fire  was  burning  in 
the  middle  of  one  of  the  huts,  whilst  great  bunches 
of  bananas  hung  from  every  post.  With  a  piece  of 
burning  wood  iand  the  bananas  we  made  our  way 
back ;  built  a  fire  in  the  tent,  and  in  the  choking, 
blinding  smoke  ate  our  bananas  and  our  raw  flour 
with  ravenous  hunger ;  all  seated  in  my  little  tent, 
as  in  fact  I  had  shared  it  with  them  during  the 
entire  term  of  my  expedition.  At  six  o'clock' a.m. 
the  savages,  black  as  Hades,  and  of  hideous  aspect, 
gathered  courage  from  our  weakness,  and  came 
down  to  see  us,  surprised  and  encouraged  by  the 
fact,  that  the  rotten  fish  in  their  boat  alongside 
had  been  undisturbed.  They  regarded  me  with 
wonder  and  fear,  for  a  white  face  had  never  before 
invaded  these  regions.  Whilst  the  fire  was  being 
lighted  to  cook  our  flour  and  water,  I  struck  a 
match  to  light  my  pipe.  With  a  rush  and  scream 
of  fright  they  precipitately  fled ;  the  lighting  of  a 
match  confirming  them  in  their  first  impression  that 


162  CENTRAL   AFEICA. 

we  came  from  the  liidden  and  mysterious  land  of 
Lucifer.  Fatigued  by  tlie  labour  of  paddling,  I 
decided  to  lighten  the  work  by  transferring  bag- 
gage to  the  two  boats,  and  abandon  the  third  ; 
which  on  our  departure  was  quickly  seized  by  the 
savages,  their  own  being  of  very  rude  con- 
struction. 

Amidst  a  pelting  rain  we  left  our  encampment, 
and  pushed  out  into  the  stream.  I  was  obliged 
to  attach  v/ith  ropes  the  boat  in  which  I  had 
placed  Adam  and  Kellerman ;  since  they  were 
utterly  unable  to  keep  her  head  down  stream,  but 
turned  round  and  round  with  the  current.  Weak 
and  enfeebled  by  disease  I  steered  and  paddled  in 
turn,  the  task  rendered  doubly  difficult  by  this 
union,  encouraging  Said  and  Abd-el,  upon  whom, 
with  myself  fell  the  burden  of  this  thirteen  days 
of  boating,  and  untold  misery  both  moral  and 
physical.  A  momentary  cessation  from  the  pelt- 
ing rain-fall  enabled  us  to  perceive  on  the  right, 
in  the  distance,  a  high  mountain,  called  by  the 
natives  "  Gebel  M'Tingi."  All  day  long  we  con- 
tinued our  paddling,  propelling  our  boats 
through  the  water  at  about  the  rate  of  four  to 
five  miles  an  hour,  aided  by  the  current.  At 
eight  o'clock  at  night,  no  longer  able  to  see  our 
way,  and  having  vainly  searched  for  a  landing 
place,  for  the  two  sides  of  the  river  were  guarded 
by  an  impenetrable  mass  of  papyrus  and  water- 
lilies   that    came   up    from    a   very  great    depth, 


HEAVY  RAINS.  163 

we  slept  in  the  boats,  wliich  drifted  down  the 
stream  in  a  darkness  that  enveloped  everything. 
The  storm  raged  with  unabated  fury;  but  tired 
and  worn  with  fatigue  Said,  Abd-el-Rahman,  and 
the  servants,  slept  soundly.  During  the  night  I 
left  my  position  in  the  boat,  to  bale  out  the  water 
that  grew  hourly  deeper,  either  from  the  rain  or 
the  leakage.  This  was  the  work  apportioned  the 
children  during  the  day;  and  right  well  they  served 
us  in  this  respect.  Crouched  in  the  stern  of  the 
boat,  that  swung  round  and  round  as  borne  down  by 
the  current,  I  endeavoured  to  pierce  the  gloom  that 
surrounded  us.  At  one  moment  buoyed  up  by 
hope,  the  next  in  the  very  abyss  of  despair ;  thus 
the  night  was  passed.  Sleep  was  perfectly  impos- 
sible ;  for  I  felt  that  my  life  went  with  the  current 
that  was  taking  us  down — where  ? 

At  four  o'clock  a.m.  I  awoke  my  men  to  con- 
tinue the  route.  At  midday  we  passed  the  moun- 
tain seen  in  the  distance  the  day  before,  and 
shortly  after,  as  if  by  magic,  we  entered  a  sheet 
of  water,  in  which  the  river  lost  itself ;  and  in 
vain  I  looked  for  the  opposite  shore,  to  be  seen 
only  from  the  river  we  had  just  left.  Stretching 
away  to  the  eastward,  a  scarcely  visible  line  seemed 
to  indicate  land :  certainly  twenty  -miles  away. 
Was  this  the  basin  from  which,  as  M'Tsetold  me, 
"  the  river  went  eastward  "  ?  It  certainly  seemed 
only  too  true ;  and  for  the  moment  a  thrill  of 
horror  ran  through  my  veins  :  for  if  it  should  be 


164  CENTEAL   AFRICA. 

true,  we  were  lost.  I  had  only  sufficient  food 
to  last  until  we  arrived  at  Mrooli :  and  of  this 
I  carefully  distributed  to  each  one  an  equal 
share. 

As  we  advanced  into  the  lake  (since  called 
"  Ibrahim")  I  descried  in  the  distance  what  seemed 
to  be  land  to  the  westward ;  but  after  several 
hours  of  hard  paddling,  proved  to  be  on  a  near 
approach  an  immense  sea  of  lilies,  whose  heads 
floated  upon  the  surface  like  a  great  hat,  and  which 
grew  up  from  an  incredible  depth.  Through 
this  apparently  illimitable  field  there  were  open 
passages  of  two  to  three  feet  wide,  cut  in  every 
direction,  made  as  we  soon  discovered  by  native 
canoes,  that  fled  like  phantoms  at  our  approach. 
These  roads  led  to  clumps  of  floating  islands  of 
reeds,  to  which  the  savages  resorted  to  fish. 
Turning  to  the  westward,  and  following  one  of 
these  passages  with  a  desire  to  reach  land  if  pos- 
sible, and  build  a  fire  that  we  might  cook  food, 
we  pushed  through  with  nervous  and  anxious 
haste.  After  several  hours  of  hard  pulling,  we 
finally  neared  what  we  presumed  to  be  land;  but 
what  in  reality  was  nothing  but  an  immense 
papyrus  jungle,  growing  upon  a  floating  "  sod  " 
— matted  with  grass,  and  beneath  which  there 
was  water,  to  a  considerable  depth.  Here  the 
road  lost  itself,  and  we  could  only  behold  before 
us  an  insurmountable  barrier  to  the  shore  that  we 
had  long  lost  sight  of.     A  boat's  crew  of  savages, 


PAPYRUS   JUNGLES.  165 

however,  wlio  had  not  observed  us,  came  dash- 
ing through,  and  opening  with  their  paddles  the 
matted  papyrus,  disclosed  a  bayou,  thus  inge- 
niously hidden  from  view.  We  immediately  made 
for  the  spot,  which  we  found  with  difficulty;  though 
but  a  moment  before  it  had  opened  to  receive  the 
savages.  The  narrow  channel  just  sufficed  to 
permit  our  boats,  which  I  uncoupled,  to  pass  in 
single  file.  Once  within,  all  was  dark  and  gloomy ; 
the  waters  assumed  a  dark  putrid  character  from 
the  decayed  vegetable  matter  that  formed  an  earthy 
covering,  and  from  which  grew  into  a  matted  arch 
overhead,  a  species  of  grass  and  papyrus,  that 
shut  out,  save  here  and  there,  the  rays  of  the  sun. 
For  two  hours  we  shoved  our  boats  through  this 
channel,  caught  at  every  moment  by  the  overhang- 
ing and  luxuriant  vegetation,  in  the  hope  of  reach- 
ing terra  firma.  Finally,  we  discovered  a  hut 
made  of  grass,  before  which  was  hung  upon  a 
frame  of  wood  thousands  of  rotten  fish,  the  sole 
food  of  these  people.  Several  small  "  dug  out " 
canoes  at  this  place  barred  our  passage.  An  old 
man  bent  with  age  advanced  to  meet  us  with 
stealthy  step,  and  face  that  marked  his  astonish- 
ment at  the  apparition  of  a  white  man.  He  proved 
to  be  an  idiot.  However,  he  finally  understood 
that  we  wished  to  kill  our  sheep  and  cook  it, 
and  led  us  to  his  cabin  over  the  "  sod,"  under 
which  was  very  deep  water,  and  in  whose  spongy 
surface  we  sank  knee  deep  at  every  step.     We 


166  CENTRAL   AFRICA. 

soon  built  a  fire  of  the  dry  papyrus,  and  smoked 
rather  than  cooked  our  only  sheep,  the  flesh  of 
which,  scarcely  warmer  than  when  in  life,  we 
devoured  ravenously.  Collecting  the  remainder, 
we  prepared  to  depart;  as  several  brutal  and 
hideous-looking  faces,  till  now  hidden  in  the 
jungle,  commenced  to  assemble.  To  have  been 
attacked  here  would  have  been  fatal  to  us,  with  no 
possible  means  of  escape.  We  turned  our  backs 
upon  them  however,  having  our  arms  in  easy 
reach,  and  gained  the  point  where  we  had  entered, 
just  as  the  sun  was  sinking  to  rest.  Another  night 
of  horrors  was  before  us ;  for  the  flash  of  light- 
ning and  mutter  of  thunder  in  the  gathering 
clouds  betokened  a  storm  that  soon  burst  upon 
us  in  all  its  fury  ;  propelled  by  the  wind,  that 
required  all  efforts  to  resist,  for  we  were  without 
anchors,  and  the  yielding  lilies  into  which  we 
were  pushed,  and  to  which  we  endeavoured  to 
cling  broke,  and  left  us  hopelessly  at  the  mercy 
of  the  winds.  About  ten  o'clock  we  were  blown 
against  a  floating  island  of  reeds,  such  as 
described,  and  to  this  we  attached  our  boats  for 
the  night;  each  in  turn  watching  and  baling  in 
order  to  keep  from  sinking. 

On  the  12th,  at  five  o'clock  a.  m.,  after  eating  a 
morsel  of  our  mutton  of  the  preceding  night,  we 
again  commenced  our  painful  work  of  paddling, 
to  which  we  addressed  ourselves  all  day  and  till 
ten  o'clock  at  night,  when  we  reached  the  left 


DISCOVERY    OF   LAKE   IBRAHIM.  167 

bank  amid  a  fearful  storm.  Here,  after  devouring 
the  last  morsel  of  mutton,  now  thoroughly  putrid, 
v/e  threw  ourselves  upon  the  earth  and  slept  despite 
the  storm  till  morning. 

On  the  13th,  at  an  early  hour,  we  sought  and 
procured  a  small  store  of  green  bananas,  whilst 
Said  making  a  fire  on  an  iron  platter  fried  some 
flour  mixed  with  water — to  us  a  most  delicious 
treat — though  really  a  most  abominable  and  un- 
healthy mixture. 

My  object  was  now,  if  possible,  to  find  the  bed 
of  the  river,  from  which  we  had  been  driven  by 
an  adverse  wind ;  and  which  would  leave  us  free 
from  the  intolerable  lilies  that  stretched  over  the 
surface  as  far  as  the  eye  could  reach.  In  addi- 
tion to  these  a  little  cup-shaped  lily — Pistia  Stra- 
tiotes — grows  here  in  great  quantities.  In  fact. 
Lake  Ibrahim  is  the  great  vegetable  nursery  for 
the  Bahr-el-Abiad ;  like  the  Yictoria,  acting  as  a 
great   reservoir   for   the    incessant    rains.      The 

o 

almost  tranquil  lake  is  only  relieved  of  its  heavy 
pressure  of  water  when  the  vegetable  matter 
decays,  is  annually  loosened,  and  bearing  upon  its 
bosom  the  Pistia  Stratiotes,  and  detached  islands 
of  papyrus,  rushes  down  and  past  Karuma  Falls 
into  the  Lake  Albert  and  thence  to  the  north.  This 
causes  the  annual  rise  in  the  Nile  long  before  it  is 
felt  at  the  Saubat.  The  waters  of  the  Nile  from 
the  Yictoria  are  clear  and  transparent ;  whilst  here 
they  are  discoloured  with  vegetable  matter. 


168  CENTRAL   AFRICA. 

Kellerman  and  Adam  had  now  become  tho- 
roughly disheartened  and  frightened ;  the  former 
grumbled  and  muttered  that  we  were  hopelessly 
lost,  and  cursed  himself  that  he  had  come.  All 
this  was  intended  as  a  reproach  to  me ;  for  in 
truth  the  way  was  lost,  really  as  yet  unknown  to 
any  one  :  as  no  other  white  man  had  ever  seen 
this  part  of  the  river.  Irritated  and  vexed  at  his 
mutinous  conduct,  I  threatened  him  severely,  end- 
ing by  reminding  him  that  I  had  begged  him  not 
to  accompany  me,  knowing  full  well  that  we  should 
be  obliged  to  suffer  hardships. 

We  toiled  all  day  at  the  paddles  through  the 
almost  impassable  lilies  that  covered,  as  far  as  the 
eye  could  reach,  the  surface  of  the  lake.  The 
mountain  M'Tingi  yet  in  sight  served  as  a  guide 
for  the  direction,  for  the  compass  that  had  aided 
me  in  my  march  southward,  had  been  by  an 
accident  broken  into  fragments,  and  was  there- 
fore useless.  At  nightfall  the  whole  heavens  were 
charged  with  great  black  clouds  of  wind  and  rain, 
from  which  burst  great  peals  of  thunder,  and  vivid 
flashes  that  alone  enabled  us  to  distinguish  each 
other  in  the  inky  blackness  that  enshrouded  all. 
A  hurricane  of  wind  and  rain  would  come  from 
one  quarter,  to  be  succeeded  by  another  from  the 
opposite  quarter.  Four  storms  thus  burst  in  suc- 
cession upon  us,  with  a  fury  that  seemed  to 
threaten  instant  destruction,  whirling  around 
and  speeding  before  it  our  two  barks,   that  were 


THE    POLAR    STAB   A    BEACON    OP    SAFETY.         169 

only   saved    from    being    upset    by    being    tied 
together. 

Sai'd  and  Abd-el-Rahman,  wearied  and  fatigued, 
dropped  asleep  on  the  cases  ;  whilst  Kellerman  and 
Adam  groaned  with  fear  and  despair :  and  the 
wearied  children,  though  dropping  to  sleep  at  every 
moment,  still  aided  me  in  keeping  the  leaking  boats 
afloat.  Wrapped  in  my  coat,  chilled  and  wet  to 
the  skin,  I  kept  the  silent  awful  watch  that  night, 
expecting  every  moment  that  the  frail  ropes  of 
the  boats,  broken  in  threads,  would  separate,  and 
launch  us  into  the  jaws  of  this  unknown  lake : 
our  fate  a  mystery  to  all  save  the  Almighty,  to 
whom  I  offered  a  silent  prayer  then.  As  during 
some  sudden  danger  or  disease  that  had  well-nigh 
carried  me  from  this  life  more  than  once  before, 
an  electric  flash  of  memory  reviewed  the  past 
from  childhood's  days  to  manhood.  Coming  from 
the  hidden  archives  of  the  brain,  whose  tender 
memories  make  life  so  dear,  they  seemed  to  quit 
their  abiding-place  to  make  room  only  for  the 
unwelcome  tenant  death.  The  night  wore  slowly 
away,  and  those  painful  hours  seemed  to  be  pro- 
longed into  weeks.  It  must  have  been  three  o'clock 
in  the  morning  when  the  fury  of  the  storm  passed 
into  a  combined  attack  southward,  leaving  the  hea- 
vens above  clear.  The  stars  came  out,  and  among 
them,  low  down  in  the  horizon,  that  I  had  at  first 
taken  for  the  light  of  a  Zeriba,  I  perceived  the 
'polar  star.     Quickly  arousing  Said  and  Abd-el- 


170  CENTRAL   AFRICA. 

Rahman,  I  pointed  to  the  star  as  a  beacon  of 
safety.  They  took  it  for  a  Zeriba  light,  and  thus 
awakened  to  energy  we  paddled  with  redoubled 
force ;  until  the  break  of  day  disclosed  directly 
before  us  a  wide  sheet  of  water,  whose  clear 
surface  denoted  the  natural  bed  of  the  river.  We 
were  not  mistaken :  for  the  moment  we  had 
reached  it  we  found  a  slight  current,  that  set  us 
in  the  proper  direction. 

The  whole  day  we  continued  the  arduous  work 
at  the  paddle,  the  sun  coming  out  with  great  fierce- 
ness. At  sundown,  unable  to  reach  the  distant 
shore,  we  tied  our  boats  to  an  island  of  papyrus 
that  grew  up  from  the  treacherous  depths.  Our 
meagre  rations  of  flour  I  distributed  equally. 
Unable  to  make  a  fire,  we  were  obliged  to  eat  the 
raw  paste,  made  by  mixing  it  with  water.  Tired 
and  worn  out,  T  arranged  the  watch  for  the  night, 
that  all  might  profit  by  the  rest,  for  the  exertion 
of  the  morrow.  I  buoyed  my  men  up  with  the 
hope,  that  the  river  would  soon  emerge  from  the 
lake,  and  that  we  must  be  nearing  Mrooli. 

The  first  watch  was  given  to  Said,  and  I  slept 
soundly,  until  awakened  by  a  gurgUng  sound  of 
water.  I  awoke  with  horror,  to  find  the  water 
rapidly  gaining  upon  us.  Five  minutes  more, 
and  the  two  boats  with  their  contents  would  have 
gone  to  the  bottom.  Hastily  awaking  Said  and 
Abd-el-Rahman,  who  overpowered  by  sleep  had 
thus  invited  the  fate  that  threatened  us,  we  com- 


WE    REGAIN   THE    RIVER.  171 

menced  to  bale  for  our  lives.  The  excitement  w^as 
such  as  to  arouse  all  hands  :  and  each  one  by 
turns  baled  away,  until  the  vp'ater  had  been  thrown 
out.  The  night  was  clear,  and  not  a  cloud 
obscured  the  firmament,  whose  unveiled  stars 
shone  as  bright  as  day.  With  common  consent 
we  cast  adrift  from  what  came  near  being  our 
funeral  papyrus  pile,  and  slowly  drifted  down 
with  the  current,  which  had  very  suddenly  in- 
creased in  rapidity.  Before  us,  in  the  distance, 
the  lake  seemed  entirely  shut  in  by  land,  and  a 
mountain  on  our  right.  If  there  should  be  no 
outlet,  and  the  river  here  lost  itself,  there  was 
nothing  left  me  but  to  take  to  the  shore,  and  find 
my  way  to  Mrooli,  certainly  not  far  distant ;  but 
what  to  do  with  Kellerman  and  Adam  I  did  not 
know.  Their  feet  were  swollen  almost  like 
elephants',  and  they  would  be  unable  to  walk. 
We  paddled  away,  upheld  by  nervous  energy, 
reaching  the  distant  land  about  mid-day,  there  to 
find  that  the  lake  suddenly  narrowed  to  about 
700  yards.  It  was  the  river  !  With  what  joy  we 
pulled  away,  until  we  had  left  the  lake  that  had 
well-nigh  proved  fatal  to  us  ! 

At  three  o'clock  on  the  16th  we  had  so  far 
advanced  that  I  thought  I  could  discern  in  the 
distance  the  village  of  MrooH'on  the  river  Kafou, 
and  the  solitary  tree  under  which  we  had  rested 
on  our  way  by  land  southward.  We  had  slept  in 
our  boats  for  four  successive  nights,  during  which 


172  CENTRAL    AFRICA. 

time,  in  the  impossibility  of  making  fire,  we  had 
been  obliged  to  eat  our  flour  raw,  with  a  few  roasted 
beans  that  I  had  ordered  to  be  cooked  in  the  be- 
ginning of  the  voyage.  We  all  looked  pale  and  hag- 
gard: if  it  were  possible  to  say  so  of  Said  and  Abd- 
el-Rahman,  whose  lustrous  black  skins  now  had 
a  lifeless  colour,  and  looked  pinched  and  worn  by 
hunger  and  fatigue.  Only  once  the  latter  showed 
sign  of  a  faint  heart,  but  was  quickly  reproved  by 
Said,  who  said  to  him,  "  Teschouf  el  Bey,  ye 
Achoui !  "  (Only  look  at  the  Bey,  0  my  brother  !) 
On  each  side  of  the  river  a  tangled  impenetrable 
mass  of  plants  grew  up,  and  defied  our  reaching 
the  land,  that  is  thus  bordered  for  a  considerable 
distance.  No  longer  able  to  continue  the  route 
from  fatigue  and  hunger,  I  headed  the  boat  for 
the  right  bank;  and  by  the  most  untiring  exertion, 
cutting  a  passage  with  knife  and  b^onet,  we 
succeeded  in  forcing  our  way  to  the  shore.  The 
boats  were  hauled  up,  and  the  boxes  taken  out. 
The  cords  in  many  places  had  given  way,  and 
great  seams  that  gaped  open,  kept  our  wearied 
boys  constantly  at  work. 

A  large  fire  was  soon  burning,  and  after  a 
hasty  dinner,  we  threw  ourselves  upon  the  earth 
to  sleep,  awakened  only  about  five  o'clock  by  a 
perfect  deluge  of  rain,  that  continued  all  night. 
My  tent  was  pitched,  in  which  were  huddled  my 
whole  force,  the  odour  from  whom  was  an  in- 
fliction I  could  only  escape  by  ordering  them  to 


ANXIETY  TO   MEET    SELIM.  173 

brave  the  storm  tliat  raged  without.  Sympathy 
in  misery  however  was  more  potent  than  my 
olfactories,  and  they  remained.  I  entertained 
now  no  doubt  that  Mrooh  lay  not  far  distant; 
and  with  a  light  heart  I  thought  that  on  the 
morrow  I  should  meet  Selim,  procure  rations, 
or  if  necessary  take  the  land  route  direct  for 
Foueira:  proud  of  having  established  the  con- 
nexion of  the  Victoria  Nile  with  this  point  (and 
Lake  Albert),  and  of  having  added  another  great 
basin  to  the  equatorial  water-shed,  in  the  discovery 
of  Lake  Ibrahim. 


CHAPTER  XIV. 

Entering  the  Stream  I  fire  a  Signal — No  response — Hostile 
fleet  of  Boats  sent  by  Keba  Rega — Parley  with  the  Sheik 
— We  attack — The  Leader  is  killed — Several  Boats  with 
their  Crews  sunk — I  am  wounded — The  Savages  renew  the 
attack,  but  are  finally  dispersed  by  our  fire,  and  make  for 
the  Shore — Heavy  losses  of  the  Savages — Fire  my  only 
Rocket  which  fails  —  Adam  and  Kellerman  —  Mount 
Kikungura — Distant  Nogarah  heard — Detachment  from 
Foueira — Meet  old  Comrades — Ludicrous  incident — 
Meet  Baba  Tuka  and  the  ex-king  Rionga — Foueira — The 
Problem  of  the  Albert  Nyanza  reluctantly  abandoned — 
Pleasant  Reunion. 

The  sun  of  the  17tli  of  August  awoke  us  only 
from  a  fatigued  slumber,  wlien  its  rays  had  become 
fiercely  hot.  Hastily  swallowing  the  relics  of  our 
paste  of  the  night  before,  we  embarked  our  cases 
in  the  boats,  the  openings  of  which  had  been 
stopped  with  rags  and  weeds.  At  ten  o'clock 
we  left  the  shore,  and  pushed  our  way  through 
the  jungle  channel  into  the  stream  :  and  after 
paddhng  two  hours  we  neared  the  shore,  when  in 
the  distance  Mrooli  was  plainly  to  be  seen.  I 
ordered  the  shots  to  be  fired  as  a  signal  to  Selim 
of  our  arrival,  as  agreed  upon.       There  was  no 


HOSTILE   FLEET   OF   KEBA   EEGA.  175 

response ;  but  in  the  thick  papyrus  that  lined  the 
shore,  I  saw  to  my  surprise  and  horror  numerous 
boats,  whose  occupants  with  arms  in  hand  and 
eager  lurking  glance,  awaited  my  approach.  A 
hurried  word  of  caution  to  my  men  caused  the 
boats  to  drift  down  the  stream,  whilst  I  gave 
orders  to  tie  them  together,  deploy  our  cartridges, 
and  place  the  cases  in  barricade,  one  upon  the 
other.  Fortunately  I  had  a  large  provision  of 
cartridges,  not  alone  for  the  two  Snyder  breech- 
loaders of  Said  and  Abd-el-Rahman ;  but  for  my 
Reilly  a  large  quantity  of  explosive  shell.  Be- 
sides these  three  guns,  there  were  three  self- 
cocking  pistols,  ordered  to  be  placed  on  the  cases 
for  close  action. 

The  river  here  was  almost  lake-like,  and  had  a 
width  of  at  least  a  thousand  yards,  and  was  of 
great  depth,  a  fact  that  greatly  aided  me  in  my 
desperate  defence  ;  for  though  the  assailants  soon 
occupied  both  sides  of  the  river,  they  were  unable 
to  reach  me  with  their  lances.  Keeping  my  boats 
broadside  in  the  middle  of  the  river,  I  received 
their  attack,  as  with  wild  yells  and  war-song,  ac- 
companied by  Nogarah  and  horns  that  were  re- 
echoed far  into  the  country,  they  deployed  their  fleet 
of  forty  boats,  in  each  of  which  were  at  least  fifteen 
to  twenty  men  armed  with  lances,  packed  so 
closely  that  their  movements  were  impeded;  a 
great  advantage  to  me,  hoAvever,  as  the  sequel 
proved.  In  close  order  they  endeavoured  to  encircle 


176  CENTRAL   AFEICA. 

my  boat,  headed  by  the  Sheik — who  alone  of  all 
the  number  had  the  slightest  pretension  to  dress  ; 
a  red  handkerchief  wound  around  his  head,  in  which 
a  mass  of  feathers  had  been  arranged. 

The  men  advanced  with  extraordinary  audacity, 
sure  of  their  prey.  They  were  the  people  of  Keba 
Rega,  the  king  of  Unyoro  ;  he,  who  in  June  1872, 
attacked  Sir  Samuel  Baker  at  Masindi,  already  men- 
tioned at  page  40.  These  men  therefore  had  smelt 
gunpowder;  but  it  seemed  not  in  sufficient  quantity 
to  deter  them  from  attack.  The  Mtongoli,  who 
spoke  a  little  broken  Arabic,  announced  to  me  that 
they  had  been  sent  by  Keba  Rega  to  kill  me,  adding, 
"useless  for  you  to  resist,  the  fishes  will  eat  you  at 
sundown."  In  reply,  I  told  him  that  Keba  Rega 
professed  friendship  for  my  Government,  pointing 
to  the  Egyptian  flag  hoisted  to  the  prow  of  my  boat. 
With  shouts  of  defiance  they  renewed  their  war- 
song,  amidst  a  horrid  din  of  drums  and  horns, 
numbering  about  500 ;  their  hideous  faces  illumined 
with  savage  devilish  glee  at  the  prospect  of  blood 
and  booty  they  advanced  to  the  attack. 

Abd-el-Rahman,  no  longer  able  to  restrain 
his  excitement  threw  his  rifle  up  to  shoot ;  when 
throwing  off  the  horror  of  my  position  for  the 
moment,  I  cried,  "  If  you  shoot,  I'll  kill  you." 
His  arm  immediately  fell  in  obedience.  I  told 
him  that  upon  the  first  shot  depended  our  lives :  and 
I  claimed  it.  Rapidly  gaining  upon  us,  came  first 
the  Sheik,  who  endeavoured  to  flank  me.     Raising 


\M 


'™''"' !i !  i  iiiii[ 


!||iilllill!lllllilllililli!iiilliili';ii.i^^ 


THE    COMMANDER  IS   KILLED.  177 

my  gun  several  times,  only  to  receive  in  return 
Ms  jeers,  I  finally  planted  in  Ms  breast  an  explo- 
sive ball,  wliicli  bursting  there  seemed  to  let  out 
Ms  life-blood  all  at  once,  as  dripping  in  gore, 
lie  fell  over  on  Ms  comrades,  and  in  doing  so 
capsized  them  all  into  tlie  stream  !  Resting  our 
guns  upon  our  barricade  of  cases,  our  firing  was 
quick  and  accurate.  With  deadly  aim,  Sai'd  and 
Abd-el-Rahman  raked  whole  boat  crews :  who 
floundering  in  the  water,  were  either  drowned,  or 
offered  an  easy  and  certain  target  to  our  rapid 
and  continuous  firing.  In  vain  they  attempted 
to  escape :  a  well-distributed  fire  had  demo- 
lished the  major  part  of  their  fleet,  now  closely 
huddled  together  in  great  confusion.  The  shells 
of  my  Reilly  burst  amongst  them,  tore  great 
holes  in  their  boats,  that  sunk,  having  nothing  to 
stop  the  leaks,  or  bursting  in  their  naked  bodies, 
carried  consternation  and  terror,  where  only  a 
moment  before  a  hellish  desire  for  massacre  ani- 
mated them  in  their  wild  fiendish  glee. 

TJnperceived  by  me,  and  protected  by  a  detached 
island  of  papyrus,  that  now  and  then  floated  by, 
a  boat  had  gained  its  friendly  cover,  and  un- 
seen had  come  within  scarcely  a  lance  length  of 
our  .boat.  Enveloped  in  smoke  I  did  not  see  the 
uplifted  lance  of  the  savage,  for  at  the  same 
moment  I  felt  a  blinding  shock,  and  fell  stunned 
and  bleeding  behind  the  case  that  had  served  me 
as  a  rest  and  barrier.     I  heard  Said  say,  "  You 


178  CENTRAL   AFEIOA. 

have  killed  the  Bey  !  "  but  ere  he  could  reach  ine, 
I  had  regained  my  feet,  whilst  the  blood  welled 
in  a  stream  from  my  nostrils,  from  an  ugly  wound 
caused  by  a  pistol-shot  from  the  hands  of 
Adam. 

It  seems  he  had  seen  the  movement  of  the  savage, 
quickly  seized  a  revolver,  and  being  directly  behind 
me  fired ;  the  ball  had  grazed  my  nose,  inflicting 
the  wound  that  had  knocked  me  down,  whilst 
Sai'd  and  Abd-el,  turning  their  fire  upon  the 
boat,  had  killed,  almost  at  gun's  length  every 
occupant. 

A  lull  in  the  firing  had  been  caused  by  the 
accident,  and  many  of  the  savages  having  regained 
their  boats,  were  now  advancing  again  to  the 
attack*  doubtless  presuming  that  our  ammunition 
was  expended.  Wiping  away  with  my  handker- 
chief the  blood  that  almost  blinded  me,  we  renewed 
the  fire,  with  the  same  deadly  aim  and  result  as 
before.  The  savages  no  longer  hoping  to  reach 
us  plunged  into  the  stream,  and  made  for  the 
shore,  leaving  the  bodies  of  their  dead  and 
wounded,  with  piteous  screams,  to  float  down 
with  the  stream.  Once  on  shore  they  followed 
us  with  mad  frenzied  yells,  as  they  were  joined 
by  thousands  who  had  been  assembled  by  Nogarali 
and  war-horn,  whose  significant  "  Toot !  toot !  " 
sounded  gratingly  on  my  ears ;  for  if  the  river 
should  become  so  narrow  as  to  permit  them  to 
attack   me   from   both    banks   simultaneously,    I 


GREAT   LOSSES   OP   THE   ENEMY.  179 

could  not  hope  to  escape.  Well-directed  shots 
however,  whose  results  were  made  known  to  us 
by  howls  of  pain,  and  a  splash  as  bodies  fell  into 
the  water,  were  welcomed  by  Said  and  Abd-el- 
Rahman  with  screams  of  defiance,  and  exultation. 
Fortunately  for  us,  and  in  contradiction  to  pre- 
vious reports  of  this  part  of  the  river,  it 
continued  both,  tvide  and  deep  (and  navigable  for 
steamers  of  heaviest  draft) ;  and  thus  our  pursu- 
ing assailants  could  not  reach  us  with  their 
lances. 

At  sunset  all  sounds  of  pursuit  were  lost  in  the 
distance  ;  and  the  practice  of  never  attacking  at 
night  seemed  to  prevail  among  the  TJnyori  tribes, 
as  well  as  others,  whose  hostility  I  had  occasion, 
before  and  since,  to  brave.  But,  in  order  to 
guard  against  surprise,  I  told  Said  and  Abd-el- 
Rahman,  that  it  would  be  necessary  to  put  as  much 
distance  between  us  and  the  savages  before  day- 
light as  possible ;  and  we  accordingly  paddled  with 
energy  all  night.  From  the  number  of  bodies  that 
we  had  seen  tumble  into  the  river,  sustained  by  the 
most  exaggerated  reports  carried  to  Foueira,  by 
straws  (savage  mode  of  enumeration)  giving 
their  loss,  we  placed  the  number  at  eighty-two, 
including  two  Sheiks.  The  number,  however, 
as  stated  by  themselves  greatly  exceeded  this ; 
about  450  cartridges  had  been  expended  in  the 
contest. 

Our  rations  of    flour  and    beans   were  almost 


180  CENTEAL   AFRICA. 

entirely  exhausted,  and  a  division  was  made  tliat 
would  enable  us  to  have  a  handful  for  the  morrow. 
It  was  necessary  then  to  employ  every  energy  to 
escape  from  the  danger  of  starvation  tTiat  stared 
us  in  the  face.  Could  I  overcome  this  new 
danger  that  had  been  imposed  upon  me  by  the  non- 
arrival  of  Selim,  who  I  feared  had  been  attacked 
by  the  same  party  and  driven  away  ?  (Subsequent 
events  proved  that  Selim  had  not  yet  arrived.) 

In  order  to  attract  his  attention,  if  possible,  and 
apprise  him  of  my  whereabouts,  I  gave  to  Said 
the  only  rocket  that  I  had  kept  for  such  an  emer- 
gency, attaching  it  to  a  small  stick  alongside  the 
flagstaff.  Said  put  fire  to  it :  it  flashed  and  splut- 
tered and  sank  into  the  water — a  failure  ! 

My  only  hope  of  success  thus  went  out  in  the 
gloom  of  the  night :  and  we  settled  with  desperate 
courage  to  the  work  of  propelling  the  boat.  By 
threats  and  intimidation  I  compelled  both  Adam 
and  Keller  man  to  ply  their  paddles.  My  breast 
and  arm  were  bruised  and  blackened  by  the  con- 
cussion of  the  heavy  charge  of  the  elephant-gun, 
and  I  used  my  paddle  with  great  pain  and  diffi- 
culty :  added  to  which  my  eye  was  so  completely 
closed,  and  black  from  the  inflammation  of  my 
broken  nose,  that  it  now  gave  me  excessive  pain. 
I  had  a  severe  chill  and  fever  during  the  night, 
but  I  felt  how  precious  every  instant  was,  and 
resolutely  kept  the  paddle  in  hand  until  ten 
o'clock  the  next  day,  when  fatigued  and  nearly 


MOUNT   EIKUNGURA.  181 

famished,  we  landed  at  a  spot,  where  we  made  a 
fire  and  cooked  our  mess  of  flour.  The  feet  of 
Adam  and  Kellerman  were  swollen  to  the  size  of 
elephants',  and  they  suffered  great  pain ;  but  the 
courage  of  my  men  was  sustained  by  the  belief 
that  I  knew  my  road;  and  that  if  they  would  hold 
out  we  should  arrive  at  Kissembois,  Rionga  Island, 
on  the  morrow.  Mount  Kikungura,  a  cone-shaped 
hill  on  my  right,  confirmed  my  assurance.  I  threw 
myself  upon  the  bank,  and,  despite  the  myriads 
of  mosquitoes,  which  I  had  forgotten  to  mention 
in  the  catalogue  of  misery  that .  had  daily  marked 
our  cruel  sufferings  during  the  month  since  our 
leaving  M'Tse — slept  as  soundly  as  if  upon  a  bed 
of  down. 

The  morning  of  the  19th,  at  an  early  hour,  the 
last  handful  of  flour  had  been  distributed,  share 
and  share  alike,  and  we  were  soon  en  route.  1 
insisted,  that  by  incessant  work  we  could  reach 
Kissembois  at  night ;  and  this  gave  an  extra  spurt 
ia  getting  over  the  last  quarter ;  for  Kissembois 
offered  us  shelter  and  food  from  the  ever-grate- 
fuUy  remembered  Riouga,  ex-king  of  Mrooli. 
We  paddled  and  paddled  until  after  midnight, 
keeping  as  well  as  we  might  the  middle  of  the 
stream,  the  dim  outline  of  the  high  papyrus  that 
lined  each  shore  alone  enabling  us  to  keep  the 
direction.  I  said  to  Said,  "  Surely  we  are  near 
Kissembois  :  fire  your  gun,  in  order  to  call  the 
attention  of  Rionga."     At  this   moment   several 


182  CENTRAL   AFRICA. 

hippopotami ,  surprised  doubtless  by  so  unusual 
an  intrusion  upon  their  nocturnal  foraging  expe- 
ditions, left  the  shore  with  maddened  roar,  and 
encircling  our  boat  made  a  show  of  fight.  We 
poured  a  brisk  fire  into  them  as  we  neared  the 
bank,  driving  them  frightened  away.  It  was  now 
two  o'clock  in  the  morning ;  darkness  and  a 
drizzHng  rain  enveloped  us  all.  Famished,  faint 
with  hunger  and  fatigue,  I  decided  to  tie  our  boat 
to  the  weeds  until  morning;  and  if  possible  to 
seek  the  shore,  in  order  to  gather  some  bananas. 
I  ordered  another  volley  to  be  fired,  and  scarce 
had  the  echo  died  away  when  the  faint  sound  of  a 
distant  Nogarah  was  heard ;  a  moment  after,  a 
bugle-call  rang  out  clear  upon  the  air.  A  thrill 
of  joy,  like  an  electric  shock,  passed  throiigh  every 
fibre  of  our  hearts.  Thank  God,  we  are  saved  ! 
I  confess  that  the  darkness  concealed  a  tear  that 
involuntarily  forced  its  way,  whilst  poor  Keller- 
man,  nearly  broken-hearted,  cried  for  joy. 

In  the  excitement  of  the  moment  I  threw  up 
my  hat,  shot  my  pistol  into  it,  and  lost  it  as  it 
fell  into  the  river.  In  company  with  Sa'id  and 
Abd-el-Rahman  I  jumped  into  the  miry  earth, 
and  found  myself  waist  deep  in  the  filthy  mud  ; 
tne  former,  however,  had  succeeded  in  pushing 
nis  way  to  the  shore,  and  fired  shots,  in 
reply  to  the  now-continued  "  II  ire "  (forward) 
that  was  being  sounded  by  bugle.  This  could 
be   no    other  than   a  detachment  fi'om    Foueira. 


MEETING   OF   OLD    COMRADES.  183 

I  called  back  Said  and  Abd-el-Raliman  and 
concluded  to  await  tlie  break  of  day,  as  in  the 
darkness  we  could  see  nothing.  An  hour  after- 
ward we  heard  the  splash  of  oars,  and  with 
nervous  excitement  awaited  their  approach.  They 
halted  a  short  time,  and  in  the  distance  we  heard 
their  challenge.  So  great  was  our  excitement, 
and  the  husky  nervousness  of  our  voices,  that  a 
long  parley  took  place  ere  we  could  convince  them 
that  it  was  Saat-el-Bey,  "  the  Bey,"  who  had  come 
by  the  river.  They  finally  approached  us,  and  the 
affectionate  greeting  in  the  darkness  by  Said  and 
Abd-el-Rahman  of  their  comrades  "El  Games," 
"  El  Fil,"  and  others  of  like  nicknames,  was  really 
affecting.  I  had  judged  aright;  a  detachment 
from  Eoueira,  under  command  of  Baba  Tuka, 
the  Adjutant-Major,  had  come  only  that  day  on  a 
foraging  expedition.  He  had  heard  our  shots, 
and  responded  by  a  bugle-call,  and  had  instructed 
his  men  to  come  to  our  relief,  and  take  me  to 
Rionga  Island  as  the  nearest  point;  whilst  he 
and  Rionga  would  come  a  few  hours  later,  and 
bring  me  food  and  whatever  I  might  want.  With 
heart  touched  by  this  exhibition  of  kindness  and 
welcome,  I  forgot  my  hunger  and  fatigue  in  the 
joy  of  the  moment.  Following  the  soldiers  in- 
structed to  convey  us  to  the  point  designated,  we 
arrived  shortly  afterward.  Day  had  not  yet  broken, 
and  the  rain  still  came  down  in  fitful  deluges,  or 

in   a   misty  cold   drizzle.     I  can   never  recall  a 

O 


184  CENTRAL  AFRICA. 

scene  that  occurred  on  arriving,  without  laughing 
heartily.  A  few  huts  on  the  high  bank  above  our 
heads  emitted  smoke;  and  the  savoury  smell  of 
food  appealed  to  my  olfactory  senses  to  such  a 
degree,  as  to  lend  unexpected  strength  to  my 
wasted  limbs.  Climbing  the  hill  quickly  I 
entered  unperceived,  when  my  shadow,  cast  upon 
the  hut  by  the  blaze,  caused  the  two  blacks 
hanging  over  the  fire  to  turn  and  behold  a  ghost- 
like bearded  face.  With  one  simultaneous  bound, 
and  agonized  cry  of  fear,  they  jumped  to  escape 
by  the  opposite  side;  but  the  unyielding  grass 
refused  them  exit:  and  the  shock  sent  the  hut 
whirling  in  the  air  like  an  inverted  umbrella. 
Whilst  too  absorbed  to  laugh  at  the  ludicrous 
sight,  I  seized  the  smoking  fish  and,  with  my 
men,  who  came  to  join  me,  devoured  it.  The 
frightened  blacks,  who  were  Rionga's  men,  had 
escaped  to  the  bush,  but  were  induced  to  return 
by  some  of  their  comrades,  who  accompanied 
the  soldiers,  and  they  added  to  our  feast  a  quan- 
tity of  roast  potatoes.  Never  before  or  since  have 
I  enjoyed  a  repast  to  such  a  degree.  The  savages 
even  looked  on  in  wonder,  to  see  our  ravenous 
consumption  of  food. 

The  morning  of  the  20th  dawned  upon  us,  seated 
around  the  fire  in  a  common  circle  of  friendly 
talk.  The  wondering  natives  and  soldiers  listen- 
ing to  Sai'd  and  Abd- el-Rahman,  who  recounted 
to  them  our  strange  adventures,  and  the  battle  in 


FOUEIEA.  185 

whicli  we  had  defeated  the  Unyori.  At  seven 
o'clock  the  Adjutant-Major  Baba  Tuka,  and 
Rionga  ariived,  bringing  me  milk  and  eggs.  The 
affectionate  greeting  of  the  former,  and  the  joy 
of  Rionga,  to  hear  that  his  old  enemy  had  been 
badly  beaten,  knew  no  bounds.  A  dance  was 
immediately  given  in  my  honour,  and  I  was  named 
upon  the  spot  "El  Belignan  Kebire"  (Great  Moun- 
tain). "  How  is  it  possible  that  you  came  by  the 
river?  did  not  the  Afrites  catch  you?"  "Yes," 
I  answered  Rionga,  "  very  nearly  at  Mrooli." 

I  refer  to  the  breakfast  that  Rionga  brought  me 
of  milk  and  eggs  with  a  pleasure  that  none  but  a 
man  nearly  starved  may  know  how  to  appreciate. 
Rionga  could  scarcely  believe  that  I  was  the 
same  man  who  had  left  him  a  few  months  be- 
fore. My  hair  hung  in  great  damp  locks  around 
my  shoulders ;  my  beard,  that  covered  my  breast, 
seemed  to  render  more  cadaverous  a  pale  and 
emaciated  face;  while  the  painful  wound  upon 
my  nose,  and  one  eye  closed  and  blackened,  made 
him  doubt,  certainly  with  reason,  my  identity. 
Kellerman  and  Adam  were  in  a  frightful  state  with 
swollen  legs  and  feet. 

Accompanied  by  the  Adjutant-Major  we  pro- 
ceeded to  Foueira,  where  we  were  received  with 
every  manifestation  of  joy  by  the  garrison.  To 
ray  eager  question  if  aid  or  succour  had  been 
sent  me,  or  any  letters  ?  the  answer  was,  "  No- 
thing."    Foueira  had  been  looked  forward  to  as  a 


186  CENTRAL   AFRICA. 

haven  of  rest  and  convalescence ;  there  was  neither 
medicine  nor  doctor;  and  the  troops  were  abso- 
hitely  suffering  for  want  of  both. 

From  this  point  I  had  hoped  for  aid,  as  I  had 
written,  that  I  wished  to  settle  the  problem  of  the 
Albert  Nyanza,  and  going  north,  follow  the  Nile  to 
Goudokoro  (whether  navigable  or  not).  There 
had  been  no  communication  with  Goudokoro,  and  I 
therefore  with  regret  was  obliged  to  abandon  the 
project.  Baba  Tuka  had  fitted  up  nicely  for  me 
several  huts  near  to  the  river,  and  here  I  was 
to  stay,  certainly  until  myself  and  j)eople  could 
regain  sufficient  strength  to  attempt  to  march 
the  300  kilometres  that  lay  between  Foueira  and 
Goudokoro.  I  must  await  the  arrival  of  Selim,  and 
also  Suleiman,  my  Sais,  who  had  gone  to  Ugunda, 
and  who  had  doubtless  met  the  former  on  the  road. 
Ibrahim  Eff.,  my  unworthy  dragoman,  came  to 
see  me,  affected  tears,  and  declared  his  sincere 
repentance  for  his  wicked  schemes  against  me. 
There  was  a  thing  I  needed — rest.  The  Adjutant- 
Major,  his  oflBcers  and  men,  treated  me  with  great 
care  and  fondness ;  he  compressed  for  me  an  oil 
from  Sim  Sim,  an  oleaginous  seed  greatly  used  in 
Africa,  to  apply  to  my  wound,  now  become  exceed- 
ingly painful.  I  had  no  other  medicine.  We  had 
chills  and  fevers  incessantly,  but  this  had  become  a 
part  of  our  daily  programme,  and  we  took  it  as 
a  matter  of  course.  At  evening  we  sat  and 
listened,   on  my   part  with   a   new   pleasure,  to 


PLEASANT   REUNION.  187 

the  stories  of  Baba  Tuka's  campaign  in  Mexico, 
and  scenes  in  his  short  Parisian  hfe — scenes  ttat 
carried  me  back  to  the  world,  which  the  few 
past  months  in  their  record  of  misery  and  suffer- 
ing seemed  to  have  removed  long  ages  from  me. 


CHAPTER  XV. 

Short  stay  at  Foueira — I  charge  Keba  Rega  with  the  Attack  at 
Mrooli — Suleiman,  now  Ambassador,  replies — Wat-el-Mek 
— The  Siave-Trade — My  Men  improve  in  Health  at 
Foueira — My  Wound  slowly  heals — Suicide  of  aMtongoli 
from  jealousy — Negro  honour — Capture  of  a  huge  Boa — 
Selim  and  Suleiman,  my  Sais,  with  the  four  disobedient 
Mtongoli,  arrive  in  Camp — Punishment  of  Selim  for  not 
obeying  orders— The  Mtongoli  appealing  to  me,  I  write  to 
M'Tse  on  their  behalf — Messenger  from  Fatiko — Unable 
to  receive  assistance  from  the  garrison  I  prepare  to  leave 
Foueira, 

From  the  20tli  of  August  to  the  13th  of  September, 
the  period  of  my  stay  at  the  camp  at  Foueira,  I 
never  ceased  to  hope  that  I  might  receive  such 
assistance,  as  would  enable  me  to  add  to  my  list 
of  discoveries,  in  the  solution  of  the  still  un- 
solved Albert  Nyanza  problem.  I  proposed  taking 
two  light  Ugunda  boats,  in  which  I  had  come 
from  Urondogani,  and  lifting  them  over  falls  and 
rapids  thus  gain  Grondokoro.  No  such  assistance 
arrived;  for  during  the  rainy  season  the  Negroes  will 
not  brave  the  dangerous  jungle,  nor  the' yet  more 
fatal  rains.  On  the  24th  I  addressed  a  communi- 
cation to  Keba  Rega  at  Masindi,  asking  an  explana- 


I   ADDRESS   KEBA   REGA.  189 

tion  o£  the  preconcerted  attack  made  upon  me  by 
his  General-in-chief  and  500  men,  at  Mrooh.  To 
this  no  reply  was  vouchsafed  ;  though  at  the  end 
of  three  weeks  I  received  a  letter  from  Suleiman, 
now  regularly  installed  as  resident  ambassador  at 
the  palace  of  Keba  E,ega.  He  made  a  rambling 
incoherent  response,  that  only  confirmed  me  in 
my  suspicions  that  he  knew  more  of  the  affair  than 
he  would  divulge ;  in  acting  against  me,  he  was 
but  proving  his  hostility  to  the  Egyptian  Govern- 
ment, and  his  sympathy  with  Keba  Rega,  the  old 
ally  of  Abou  Saoud. 

A  sketch  of  my  life  at  Foueira  may  not  be 
without  interest  to  the  reader ;  though  devoid  of 
much  of  the  stu'ring  incident  of  travel. 

Wat-el-Mek  was  still  here,  living  a  life  of  idle- 
ness and  perpetually  drunk.  Like  Othello,  "  his 
occupation  was  gone;"  for  the  occupation  of  the 
country  as  far  as  this  post  by  the  Egyptian  troops, 
had  broken  up  the  alliance  between  these  Dongo- 
lowee  chiefs  and  the  "  Sheiks  "  of  tribes,  in  negro 
hunting.  The  regular  troops  were  looked  upon 
as  the  protectors  of  the  people ;  and  there  was  a 
consequent  ill-feeling  existing  upon  the  part  of 
the  Dongolowee  toward  the  Government  soldiers ; 
the  former  till  now  being  paid  for  their  ser- 
vice in  ivory  hunting,  in  slaves.  The  Govern- 
ment paid  them  in  money.  Here  there  was  a 
great  step  forward,  if  not  a  practical  suppression 
of  the  slave-trade  by  these  military  posts.  This 
fact  is  cited  to  refute  letters  that  I  have  seen. 


190  CENTEA.L   ArETCA. 

composed  with  the  intention  of  deceiving  and 
misleading  those  who  in  a  true  spirit  of  philan- 
thropy desire  the  cessation  of  the  slave-trade. 
I  repeat,  in  the  interests  of  truth  and  justice,  that 
here  as  at  every  other  military  post,  a  slave  has 
only  to  seek  protection  or  freedom  and  it  is 
granted  him  :  stringent  orders  having  been  issued 
to  that  effect  by  the  government  of  his  Highness 
the  Khedive. 

Foueira  is  a  military  post  composed  of  straw 
huts :  but  the  daily  routine  of  service,  as  at  a 
regular  garrison,  is  punctually  observed  by  its 
excellent  commander,  the  Adjutant-Major  Baba 
Tuka.  The  collection  of  huts  assigned  me 
looked  out  upon  the  river  from  the  high  bank : 
whilst  a  desperate  but  unsuccessful  attempt  at  a 
garden  ran  along  the  outer  palisade  on  the  bank, 
where  every  day  I  went  to  watch  the  growth  of 
radishes  that  would  not  mature,  but  made  a  most 
excellent  and  greatly  appreciated  salad.  My  food 
now  consisted  of  goats'  meat  sent  me  by  Rionga, 
fried  "  dourah  "  and  sweet  potatoes,  the  perpetual 
ration  of  the  Soudan  soldier.  My  men  soon 
showed  evidence  of  recuperation  upon  this  regime  : 
but  with  me  there  was  but  little  abatement  to  the 
fever  and  diarrhoea  with  which  I  had  been  now  for 
months  a  sufferer,  having  no  medicine  whatever. 
I  resorted,  as  often  before,  to  chewing  bitter  leaves 
and  roots,  in  the  vain  hope  of  coming  across  some 
tonic  or  astringent. 


MY   WOUND   SLOWLY    HEALS.  191 

At  niglifc,  whenever  the  weather  permitted,  the 
Commander  caused  the  soldiers  to  assemble  their 
"  bints,"  and  very  often  Rionga  assisted  with  his 
Abides,  for  a  dance.  This  was  a  joyous  occasion, 
the  music,  and  the  peculiar  step  of  the  soldier, 
mostly  recruited  from  the  Dinka  tribes,  was  a 
source  of  infinite  amusement  and  forgetfulness  to 
me.  A  clear  night  there  came  to  be  looked  for  as 
my  "benefit  night;"  since  the  kindly  Adjutant- 
Major  never  tired  of  seeking  to  remove  the  cloud 
of  care  and  pain  that  overshadowed  my  face. 

My  wound  gave  me  great  pain,  and  more  than 
once  I  despaired  of  reducing  the  inflammation 
and  profuse  suppuration,  that  yielded  only  weeks 
later  to  cold  applications. 

During  the  day,  when  not  in  company  with  the 
ofiicers,  listening  to  their  oft  repeated  stories  of 
their  Mexican  campaign,  upon  which  they  loved 
to  dwell,  I  sat  alone  and  pensive  under  the 
shade  of  the  banana-trees  that  lined  the  back 
of  the  hut,  and  watched  the  detached  papyrus 
isles  and  Pistia  Stratiotes  that  floated  down, 
coming  from  Lake  Ibrahim,  and  were  carried 
over  Karuma  Falls,  the  murmur  of  whose  falling 
waters  could  be  plainly  heard  scarce  two  hours 
away. 

The  Riongi,  Unyori,  and  Ugundi,  as  before 
remarked,  speak  a  common  language.  The  two 
former  are  much  darker  in  complexion  than  the 
Ugundi,  whose  mixed  Arab  or  Indian  blood  is  but 


192  CENTRAL  AFEICA. 

too  apparent  in  tlieir  tint.  The  rule  of  Rionga  is 
tempered  by  justice  and  mildness;  wMlst  Keba 
Rega,  cruel  and  ferocious,  is  ever  creating  fetiches, 
suggested  by  his  ignorance  and  caprice.  These 
people,  like  the  Ugunda,  manufacture  very  hand- 
some vases  of  glazed  earth. 

One  night,  when  a  fearful  storm  had  just  passed 
over  the  camp,  I  went  to  the  door  of  my  hut  to 
peer  out,  and  heard  the  report  of  a  gun.  Hoping 
that  it  might  be  the  delinquent  Selim  with  my 
horse,  I  sent  Said  to  inquire  about  it.  A 
Mtongoli,  sent  several  months  before  by  Keba 
Rega  as  a  resident  ambassador  and  means  of 
communication  with  camp,  had  shot  himself  with 
the  gun  of  one  of  the  Dongolowee — irregular 
soldiers  in  whose  camp  he  resided.  "Mirabile 
dictu ! "  here,  indeed,  was  a  curious  case.  A 
second  Othello,  who  jealous  and  suspicious  of  his 
Desdemona's  virtue,  had  quarrelled  with  his  sus- 
pected ofl&cer  that  day,  and  had  killed  himself  at 
night.  An  exceptional  case  certainly  in  all  negro 
history,  since  with  all  the  virtues  attributed  to 
him,  he  has  never  been  endowed  with  those  tender 
susceptibilities,  that  indicate  a  sense  of  wounded 
and  outraged  honour. 

On  the  13th  of  September,  whilst  seated  in  my 
accustomed  place  under  a  tree,  I  was  surprised 
to  see  Wat-el-Mek,  with  ten  of  his  men,  with 
difficulty  dragging  something  that  seemed  to  me 
the  body  of  a  tree.    To  my  astonishment  it  proved 


«  ' 


lllilw^^-""-'  lilJfciillM^^^^^^  ' 


CAPTURE    OF   A   BOA.  193 

to  be  a  huge  boa-constrictor  tb.ey  had  just  killed 
behind  my  hut,  and  which  they  had  brought  to 
me  as  a  surprise.  A  female,  it  measured  thirty 
feet  in  length,  and  in  diameter  was  the  size  of 
a  child.  Baba  Tuka  had  frequently  told  me  that 
a  huge  monster  came  nightly  to  suck  the  cows 
penned  very  near  my  hut ;  but  incredulous,  I 
had  registered  it  as  a  wonderful  "  snake  story," 
become  a  proverb  born  of  the  horror  that  the  ser- 
pent always  inspires.  Only  the  preceding  night, 
however,  my  men  seated  around  the  fire  in  the  hut 
adjoining  mine,  had  precipitately  fled  in  terror  at 
the  appearance  of  a  huge  head  that  looked  at 
them  from  an  interstice  in  the  grass  wall ;  whilst 
at  their  feet  countless  small  serpents  glided 
about.  The  cause  was  now  apparent ;  the  eggs 
of  the  boa  had  been  laid  unpeixeived  on  the  outer 
wall  of  the  hut,  and  hatching :  had  invaded  the  hut 
at  a  moment  when  the  female  came  from  the  river. 
A  strict,  and  somewhat  nervous  watch  was  kept 
that  night,  without  result :  but  on  this  morning 
whilst  leaving  the  river,  evidently  in  search  of  her 
young,  she  had  been  shot  by  "Wat-el-Mek.  The 
huge  monster  writhed  still  with  life  that  it  seemed 
almost  impossible  to  extinguish,  though  the  head 
and  back  were  crushed  in  several  places.  I 
confess  that  every  night  thereafter,  on  retiring  to 
my  bed,  I  felt  a  strange  sensation  of  horror, 
as  I  thought  of  the  possibility  of  my  being 
'*  Laocooned "    ere    morning.     The   lowlands    of 


194  CENTRAL   AFRICA. 

Unyoro  are  fiill  of  these  reptiles,  as  well  as  the 
low  wilderness,  that  stretches  before  the  sight  in  a 
sea  of  jungle  grass  on  the  opposite  side  of  the 
river. 

The  most  wonderful  stories  are  told  of  men 
incautiously  sleeping  with  their  legs  uncrossed, 
who  are  swallowed  by  these  monsters. 

On  the  13th,  Selim  and  Suleiman  arrived  in 
camp :  the  former  with  my  horse  and  donkeys, 
and  accompanied  by  four  Mtongoli,  the  same  who 
thirty-five  days  before  had  basely  deserted  me. 
It  seemed  that,  fearful  of  going  to  Mrooli,  they 
had  encamped  in  a  plantain  grove ;  and  during 
the  thirty-five  days  that  intervened,  they  had 
made  good  cheer  of  the  forty  head  of  cattle  sent 
me  in  good  faith  by  M'Tse.  Twelve  head  of  cattle 
were  brought  in  however :  a  timely  arrival,  for 
the  garrison  here  had  no  meat.  Suleiman,  my 
Sais,  whom  I  have  before  mentioned  as  recovered, 
who  had  gone  south  in  the  hope  of  reaching  me  at 
M'Tse,  had  met  on  the  road  these  men,  and  learn- 
ing from  them  that  I  had  gone  by  the  river, 
absolutely  drove  them  all  forward,  otherwise 
they  would  never  have  reached  camp.  As  a 
punishment  of  disobedience  of  my  orders  that 
had  nearly  cost  us  our  lives  by  starvation,  and 
the  battle  of  Mrooli;  I  decided  to  make  an 
example  of  Selim :  and  accordingly  fifty  coorbatch 
(stripes)  were  vigorously  applied  to  him,  by  Sai'd 
and  Abd-el-Rahman. 


MESSENGEE  FEOM   m'tS^.  195 

The  Mtongoli,  now  came  forward,  and  falling 
prostrate,  yanzigged  energetically,  that  I  might 
write  to  M'Tse,  to  save  their  heads.  M'Tse  had 
heard  of  their  abandonment  of  me,  and  had  sent, 
about  the  same  time  as  the  arrival  of  Suleiman 
in  their  camp,  a  soldier  named  Matinda;  with 
instructions  to  make  his  way  to  Foueira,  and 
thence  to  Gondokoro,  to  return  with  a  letter 
from  me  as  proof  of  my  safe  arrival,  or  "his 
head  should  pay  the  forfeit."  Matinda  had 
thi'eatened  the  Mtongoli  with  his  report  upon 
their  misconduct,  and  they  now  appealed  to  me 
to  save  them  from  certain  death.  I  persisted 
in  refusing :  telling  them  "  you  deserve  to  be 
killed."  I,  however,  wrote  to  M'Tse,  asking 
that  he  would  not  kill  them  ;  and  adding  that  he 
would  do  me  a  great  favour  by  changing  a 
custom  which  by  sacrificing  his  people  only  weak- 
ened his  strength,  and  was  not  worthy  of  "so 
great  a  king."  The  inhumanity  of  the  question 
was  not  alluded  to  :  for  I  felt  that  was  a  point  to 
be  touched  upon,  when  the  right  to  murder  was 
no  longer  considered  an  undisputed  "  attribute  "  of 
an  African  king.* 

Whilst  here  a  messenger  was  reported  as  having 

^  The  recent  visit  of  Stanley  and  Linant  perhaps  proves 
that  he  may  have  followed  my  counsel;  but  it  is  by  no  means  cer- 
tain that  this  prerogative  can  be  so  soon  abandoned.  Neither 
Stanley  nor  Linant  was  received  with  the  honours  accorded 
me. 


196  CENTRAL  AFRICA. 

come,  in  eager  liaste  from  Fatiko,  the  next  mili- 
tary post,  with,  letters.  I  sent  for  him,  hoping 
that  though  sick  with  despair,  now  at  the  last 
moment  I  might  accomplish  a  task,  that  I  felt 
sure  would  be  acceptable  to  the  Geographical 
world.  The  messenger  came ;  he  had  been  sent 
with  letters  by  the  Governor  of  the  post  of  Fatiko 
for  the  oJBficers  of  this  station.  He  had  been 
attacked  on  the  route,  wounded  twice,  and  his 
companion  killed.  This  was  a  great  disappoint- 
ment; and  in  the  anger  of  the  moment  I  cursed 
the  fates  that  seemed  to  thwart  me. 

The  soldiers  of  the  garrison  at  Foueira  were 
suffering  from  sores  made  by  the  poisonous  weeds 
that  infest  the  country,  which  in  the  absence  of 
treatment  had  nearly  rendered  them  all  invalids ; 
the  few  that  were  fit  for  duty  were  necessary  to 
the  defence  of  the  garrison,  that  might  at 
any  moment  be  attacked  by  Keba  Rega,  incited 
by  Suleiman  and  Wat-el-Mek,  to  whom  all 
these  difficulties  were  doubtless  due.  Baba  Tuka 
readily  assented  to  my  proposition  to  go  to  Lake 
Albert;  but  to  do  so  under  the  circumstances 
would  have  imperilled  the  garrison,  and  caused 
its  probable  loss.  I  therefore  decided,  though 
with  great  regret,  to  turn  my  steps  northward, 
through  the  wilderness  and  jungle-road,  notwith- 
standing the  protest  of  Baba  Tuka.  To  remain 
longer  in  this  place,  I  felt  was  to  die  of  misery  and 
inaction;  besides  my  men  were  now  sufficiently 


PEEPAEE  TO  LEAVE  FOUEIEA.        197 

convalescent  to  accompany  me.  Rionga  was  ap- 
pealed to,  and  promised  me  an  escort  on  the 
morrow;  whilst  several  packages  of  sweet  potatoes 
and  bananas  were  nicely  packed  in  banana  leaves 
for  the  route  to  Fatiko.  All  was  bustle  and  con- 
fusion at  night,  and  until  a  late  hour,  the  officers 
and  men,  with  kindly  affection,  begged  me  to 
remain  with  them  until  the  end  of  the  rainy  season. 
I  regretted  leaving  them,  but  I  knew  that  if  I 
lingered  until  the  rainy  season  had  finished,  I 
should  never  cross  any  river,  but  that  mystic  one 
that  separates  us  from  the  "  Unknown  Land." 


CHAPTER  XVI. 

1  bid  farewell  to  Foueira  and  Baba  Tuka — Crossing  the  river 
we  march  through  the  jungle — Arrive  at  Fatiko — Re- 
ceive a  warm  welcome — Kindness  of  Adjutant-Major 
Abdallah — Visited  by  the  Sheiks — Character  of  the  Fatiki 
— I  am  attacked  with  Fever  and  Delirium — Receiving 
an  escort  and  convoy  for  ivory,  I  leave  Fatiko — Old 
Bakhite  —  Cross  the  Hor-el-Asua  —  Laughable  Scene — 
Unmolested  by  the  Mogi — Cross  the  Hor-el-Ramle — 
Regaf — Tiib  Agha,  the  Commandant,  tells  me  the  vague 
Rumours  that  preceded  us — Arriving  at  Gondokoro, 
welcomed  by  the  Governor  General  and  Abou  SaoM — 
Death  of  M.  Auguste  Linant. 

On  the  15th  of  September  the  Abide  escort  and 
a  detail  of  soldiers  being  ready,  I  left  Foueira, 
descending  the  river  to  Kariima  Falls,  where  the 
high  banks  on  either  side  made  an  easy  landing ; 
whilst  opposite  Foueira  the  low  lands  were 
marshy  and  overflowed. 

I  remained  with  Baba  Tuka  until  all  had  been 
passed  over  with  the  exception  of  "  TJgunda," 
whose  transit  across  opposite  Foueira  in  going 
southward,  had  caused  me  great  trouble  and 
uneasiness ;  but  now  companion  of  my  travels  for 
many  months,  there  was  a  tie  between  us  that 


MAECH  THROUGH  THE  JUNGLE.        199 

might  be  seen  in  his  obedience ;  for  at  the  mere 
wave  of  my  hand,  and  ere  I  could  anticipate  it, 
he  leaped  into  the  dug-out  with  a  shock  that 
came  near  capsizing  it.  The  transit  was  made  in 
perfect  safety,  and  once  on  the  bank  the  bugle 
sounded  "forward !"  I  embraced  Baba  Tuka,  to 
whom  I  had  become  greatly  attached,  and  plunged 
into  the  jungle,  whose  morass  and  miasma  were 
now  augmented  by  the  deluge  of  rains  that  had 
fallen  since  the  month  of  May,  when  I  had  passed 
through  it.  The  jungle-grass,  wet  and  sodded, 
formed  a  net-work  at  times  across  the  path, 
through  which  we  could  only  make  our  way  by 
cutting  through  it  with  bayonet  and  knife.  The 
rain  fell  incessantly  in  torrents,  and  the  wild  un- 
inhabited jungle  of  more  than  one  hundred  rniles, 
was  thus  rendered  almost  impassable.  Though  sick 
and  feeble,  the  energy  that  hope  kindled,  caused 
me  to  tax  the  marching  qualities  and  endurance 
of  my  men  to  the  very  utmost.  From  six  o'clock 
in  the  morning  until  six  at  night  became  our 
day's  work ;  urging  my  men  to  this  by  the  pro- 
mise of  better  days  at  Fatiko.  I  knew  it  to  be  a 
race  for  life  :  and  I  felt  a  sort  of  mad  pleasure  in 
breaking  through  this  jungle,  or  wading  to  my 
waist  in  mud,  when  my  horse  was  no  longer 
able  to  carry  me  over  it.  From  time  to  time  the 
monotony  of  the  route  was  varied  by  the  rush 
and  trumpeting  of  a  herd  of  elephants  across  our 
path,  at  which  we  got  uncertain  shots,  or  the  mad- 


200  ,  CENTRAL   AFRICA. 

dened  roar  of  a  startled  buffalo.  The  country  was 
full  of  game,  but  my  thouglits  and  objects  were  else- 
where; even  had  I  had  the  strength  to  pursue  them. 

On  the  morning  of  the  20th  at  midday,  we  left 
the  jungle,  and  reached  the  high  plateau  that 
leads  into  Fatiko.  The  day  was  clear  and  brilliant, 
though  the  sun  was  excessively  hot.  The  soldier 
Matinda,  whom  I  could  not  persuade  to  leave  me, 
though  I  offered  to  give  him  the  letter  that  M'Tse 
required,  accompanied  us.  "We  stopped  on  a  high 
ridge  of  rocks,  in  order  that  my  men  might  change 
their  dress  and  make  a  respectable  appearance ; 
after  which  we  marched  into  the  garrison,  where 
we  were  received  with  the  usual  honours  by  the 
troops.  Our  arrival  was  greeted  with  enthu- 
siasm, and  Said  and  Abd-el-Rahman  recounted 
in  their  own  graphic  way  the  scenes  of  triumph, 
and  scenes  of  pain  that  had  marked  the  interval 
of  our  absence.  My  friend  the  Adjutant-Major 
had  built  expressly  for  me  a  splendid  "  tokel,"  that 
contained  many  of  the  comforts  of  a  house,  being 
neatly  plastered  inside  and  out,  and  possessing 
windows  that  admitted  light.  The  tokels  to 
which  I  had  been  condemned  were  like  dungeons; 
whilst  the  grass  with  which  they  were  covered 
was  simply  a  hiding-place  for  lizards,  scorpions, 
and  the  white  ants,  that  devoured  everything  that 
came  within  their  reach,  even  the  tokel  itself. 

Ensconced  in  the  tokel  assigned  me  in  the 
centre  of  the  garrison,  I  received  the  officers  who 


KINDNESS    OP   ADJUTANT-MAJOE  ABDALLAH.       201 

came  to  visit  me.  My  changed  appearance,  as 
heretofore  described,  from  wound  and  famine, 
occasioned  much  comment,  and  served  to  cor- 
roborate what  Said  and  Abd-el  had  already  related 
through  the  camp.  My  costume  in  Central 
Africa  had  been  habitually  closely-fitting  red 
pants,  and  white  flannel  jacket,  with  tarbouche 
and  "  coufiah "  (large  Turkish  silk  handker- 
chief) as  a  protection  against  the  sun,  and  high 
cowhide  boots  and  spurs.  During  the  day  I 
took  off  the  flannel  jacket.  My  pantaloons  were 
confined  at  the  waist  by  a  wide  silk  sash. 

I  was  now  dressed,  however,  in  my  full  uni- 
form, resembling  that  of  the  Chasseurs  d'Afrique ; 
but  these  were  becoming  sadly  dilapidated. 
New  and  untarnished,  however,  in  my  dchiU 
at  Ugunda  they  had  served  me  well  ;  for 
the  bright  red  and  gold  cord  gave  me  great 
credit,  not  alone  with  the  puissant  M'Tse,  but 
with  the  hareem,  who  always  remained  faithful 
to  the  "  Mbuguru,"  and  who  constantly  begged 
that  I  might  visit  them. 

The  kindly  commander,  Adjutant-Major  Ab- 
dallah,  as  well  as  his  officers,  contributed  all  in 
their  power  to  make  us  comfortable.  Here  there 
was  plenty  of  meat,  and  I  now  had  a  little  rice, 
chat  was  so  necessary  to  my  diet,  and  milk, 
though  I  drank  it  only  after  repeated  assurance 
that  it  was  not  prepared  as  that  which  Gimmoro 
had  given  me  on  my  previous  visit,  and  of  which 


202  CENTRAL   APKICA. 

my  taste  was  yet  suspicious.  Wat-el- Ajoose,  Gim- 
moro,  and  Sholi,  Sheiks  of  Fatiko,  came  to  see 
me,  and  of  course  brought  their  wives.  These 
ladies,  in  contradistinction  to  their  husbands  who 
wore  skins  across  their  loins,  or  were  dressed  in 
gowns,  (marks  of  their  being  government  ofl&cials,) 
were  perfectly  nude,  with  the  exception  of  a  few 
beads  around  their  necks.  Their  hair,  like  that 
of  the  men,  was  an  object  of  great  care.  Totally 
unprovided  with  presents  now,  since  I  had  long 
since  given  all  away,  I  drew  some  from  the  maga- 
zine and  presented  them;  at  which  they  were 
greatly  pleased.  The  Fatiki,  of  all  the  negro 
tribes  I  had  seen,  are  the  most  moral  and  the  most 
honest.  They  were  very  numerous,  and  their 
well-filled  corn-bins  attested  their  frugality  and 
their  industry  in  the  cultivation  of  "  dourah,"  the 
sole  product  of  the  soil.  Their  peculiar  yelping 
in  talking,  and  their  ideas  of  "  Lubari,"  have 
been  before  adverted  to. 

The  passage  of  the  "  Hor-el-Asua"  was  reported 
to  me  as  absolutely  impracticable  at  this  season. 
I  tried  by  every  means  to  inform  myself  of  the 
truth  of  this:  and  the  Adjutant-Major  sent  several 
of  the  Fatiko  men  to  the  river  Asua,  to  a  point 
two  days  to  the  eastward,  to  know  if  the  river 
was  flooded.  They  returned  with  the  reply  that 
"  it  was  flooded  and  impassable." 

Irritated  and  impatient  to  the  last  degree,  I 
endeavoured   to   convince   the    ofiicers    that    by 


ATTACKED   WITH   FEVEK   AND    DELIRIUM.         203 

means  of  a  raft  I  could  effect  a  passage  even 
over  rapids,  that  I  knew  could  not  be  very 
dangerous  there.  The  next  difficulty  was  to  per- 
suade the  Fatiki  to  go,  for  the  Adjutant-Major 
desired  to  profit  by  my  journey  in  sending  for- 
ward under  my  care  a  large  mass  of  ivory,  that 
he  had  collected  on  government  account. 

Though  Fatiko  is  situated  on  a  rocky  plateau 
that  commands  a  view  of  the  country,  with  Gebel, 
Shoua,  Fatiko,  and  Franke  close  by,  it  is  none  the 
less  unhealthy,  as  the  tainted  air  from  the  marshes 
bounding  it  on  the  south  makes  it  sickly. 

Kellerman  and  Adam  were  certainly  ill,  the 
former  so  much  so  that  I  feared  it  would  be 
impossible  for  him  to  accompany  us.  On  the 
24th  I  was  seized  by  a  violent  access  of  fever,  that 
on  the  25th  culminated  in  delirium.  Returninof  to 
consciousness  after  a  rush  of  blood  to  the  brain, 
I  found  myself  endeavouring  to  grope  my  way 
from  the  hut,  nearly  blind  and  black  in  the  face. 
For  the  first  time  an  idea  that  I  might  be  going 
mad  forced  itself  upon  me;  the  very  horror  of 
which,  I  verily  believe,  saved  me  fi'om  succumbing 
in  this  way  to  the  daily  attacks  of  jungle  fever, 
wherein  the  brain  is  constantly  effected.  All  my 
men  were  ill  with  the  same  disease.  My  liver  had 
swollen  to  an  enormous  size,  and  I  could  no 
longer  bear  the  pressure  of  the  band  of  my  dress 
around  my  waist.  Without  medicine  one  day,  I 
sent  a  soldier  to  search  for  some  wild  red  pepper 


204  CENTRAL   AFEICA. 

that  I  had  noticed  en  route.  A  macerated  appli- 
cation of  this  over  the  affected  part,  as  a  bhster, 
induced  a  lull  in  the  pain  and  a  sound  sleep, 
to  which  I  had  long  been  a  stranger.  This  was  a 
happy  disco  v^ery  for  me,  and  I  applied  it  frequently 
with  great  success. 

The  interval  between  this  and  my  departure 
was  employed  in  rambling  around  the  ridge  of 
rocks,  and  visits  to  the  village  of  Gimmoro  near 
by.  In  order  to  gain  strength  for  the  journey  I 
took  short  rides  on  horseback.  The  rest  of  the 
day  I  sat  solitary  and  alone,  musing  upon  the 
strange  and  almost  unreal  scenes  through  which 
as  by  miracle  I  had  passed ;  and  wondering  if  I 
should  ever  meet  again  with  my  sympathetic  fellow 
creatures  in  civilization. 

It  was  the  constant  theme  of  conversation  of 
the  Adjutant-Major  that  I  must  await  the  cessa- 
tion of  the  rain  before  I  could  possibly  cross  the 
Asua.  I  finally  told  him  that  I  must  go,  and 
the  passage  of  the  Asua  would  be  made  if  it 
were  necessary  to  bridge  it.  Preparations  were 
then  commenced,  and  finally  on  the  night  of  the 
4th  of  October  it  was  announced  that  I  might 
leave  on  the  morrow.  The  Fatiki  had  been  ob- 
tained as  porters  for  the  ivory,  at  one  cow  for 
each  tusk ;  and  eighty-one  tusks  were  to  be  sent. 

Kellerman,  now  no  longer  able  to  proceed,  was 
by  his  own  consent  committed  to  the  care  of  the 
Adjutant-Major,  who  was  strictly  enjoined  to  take 


I   LEAVE   FATIEO.  205 

good  care  of  him.  The  high  jungle-grass  through 
which  we  were  to  make  our  way  precluded  the 
possibility  of  carrying  him  upon  a  litter.  He 
was,  therefore,  to  remain  and  join  Wat-el-Mek 
and  Ibrahim  my  dragoman,  who  would  pass  the 
station  en  route  for  Gondokoro  at  the  end  of  the 
rainy  season.  This  was  done,  and  both  Kellerman 
and  Ibrahim  arrived  in  apparent  good  health  at 
Gondokoro,  where  I  ceased  to  have  the  care  of 
either  the  one  or  the  other.     Mashallah  ! 

Amid  the  most  cordial  and  friendly  expressions 
of  adieu  I  quitted  Fatiko  on  the  5th,  with  200  miles 
of  tortuous  road  to  Gondokoro  before  me.  The 
garrison  of  Fatiko,  composed  of  200  men,  was 
sheltered  from  any  attack,  not  alone  from  its 
position  in  a  military  point  of  view,  but  because 
of  the  entire  sympathy  of  the  natives,  who 
were  most  friendly  to  the  government  troops, 
and  acknowledged  their  authority,  with  pride  at 
being  considered  as  belonging  to  "  Meri."  A 
detail  of  sixty  soldiers  under  command  of  a 
lieutenant,  and  twenty  of  the  "  Hotariah  "  Don- 
golowee  employed  as  irregulars,  were  to  act  as 
an  escort  for  the  eighty-one  tusks  of  ivory  that 
were  to  be  sent  to  head-quarters.  A  guard  was 
rendered  necessary  by  the  hostility  of  the  Mogi 
tribe,  who  had  attacked  me  going  southward. 

On  the  night  of  the  8th,  having  made  a  detour 
westward  towards  the  river,  we  arrived  at  Fagri- 
niah,  a  Dongolowee  "  Zcriba,"  now  under  control 


206  CENTRAL   AFRICA. 

of  the  Egyptian  Government.  Here,  should  it  be 
deemed  necessary,  we  hoped  to  get  assistance 
from  "  Bakhite,"  their  veteran  chief,  if  the  passage 
of  the  river  should  prove  difiBcult.  Old  Bakhite 
was  an  extraordinary  man ;  black  as  ebony,  his 
little  withered  frame  and  pinched  features  de- 
noted his  age  (he  was  about  seventy-five),  and 
the  hard  life  that  had  always  been  his ;  for  he  had 
been  born  and  brought  up  in  the  jungles,  and 
knew  every  Sheik  of  the  tribes  from  this  point  to 
Lake  Albert.  He  seemed  jealous  at  my  having 
gone  farther  south  than  he,  and  absolutely 
expressed  doubts,  that  I  should  have  "  come  all 
the  way  from  the  great  M'Tse,  by  the  river  that 
here  flowed  past  his  camp."  The  Zeriba  of  Bak- 
hite and  his  followers  (about  eighty  men)  numbered 
really,  including  women  and  children,  several 
hundreds.  "  Eaki "  and  "  merissa  "  were  manu- 
factured in  large  quantities,  entirely  for  home 
consumption — if  I  might  infer  from  the  maudlin 
condition  of  all — Bakhite  not  excepted.  He 
produced  a  bottle  of  "  Eaki,"  a  most  grateful 
present — as  I  had  had  nothing  whatever  of 
spirituous  drinks  since  leaving  Gondokoro ;  and 
my  weakened  and  debilitated  frame  was  in  sore 
need  of  a  stimulant.  He  told  me,  that  only  a 
few  days  before,  the  machinery  of  a  steamer  had 
been  brought  up  nearly  to  Dufle;  and  it  was 
intended  to  place  it  upon  the  Albert  Nyanza. 
On  the  following  morning,  amid  the  unfavour- 


CROSS    THE    HOR-EL-ASUA.  207 

able  auguries  of  the  camp,  I  pushed  forward 
and  gained  the  Hor-el-Asua  shortly  after  sun- 
down, having  made  an  extraordinary  march  of 
nine  hours  and  a  half  through  a  most  terrible 
jungle.  Spurring  my  horse  forward,  I  leaped  in 
haste  down  the  bank,  to  know  if  I  should  have 
trouble  in  its  passage.  Thank  heaven !  I  found  it 
scarcely  four  feet  deep.  My  men  arriving,  over- 
come with  heat  and  fatigue,  now  rushed  madly 
into  the  stream.  We  encamped  on  the  bank,  and 
at  daylight  on  the  morning  of  the  10th  we  passed 
over  without  accident.  I  swam  Ugunda  boldly 
across,  where  he  had  walked  with  fear  and  trem- 
bling in  the  beginning  of  the  expedition.  The 
women  and  children  of  the  soldiers,  of  whom 
there  is  always  a  goodly  train,  were  carried  across 
on  the  heads  of  the  men.  The  scene  was  often 
ridiculous  in  the  extreme,  as  one  might  see  a  little 
tat  naked  woman,  perched  frog-like  upon  the  head 
or  shoulders  of  her  soldier  husband. 

On  the  11th  we  reached  Lahore  after  fa- 
tiguing marches,  crossing  the  Hor-Bari,  whose 
pebbly  bed  is  filled  with  mica  and  iron.  The 
glitter  of  the  former  is  like  gold;  and  varied 
exclamations  of  "  Dahab  !  dahab  !  "  (gold  !)  came 
from  my  men,  as  they  dropped  their  guns  and 
scrambled  for  the  coveted  but  deceptive  lumps. 

On  the  12th  we  passed  the  Mogi  country, 
whose  open  and  rolling  grass-covered  plains 
replace  the  fatiguing  jungle  through  which    we 


208  CENTEAL   AFRICA. 

had  passed  till  now.  The  Mogi  gathered  in  great 
numbers  on  our  flank,  standing  in  token  of  peace- 
ful intentions,  with  the  hollow  of  the  right  foot 
resting  upon  the  left  knee,  and  leaning  upon  their 
lances.  The  country  here  is  really  beautiful,  and 
cut  by  streams  of  rain-water,  from  which  we  drink 
with  almost  childish  glee.  On  the  night  of  the 
loth  we  encamped  on  the  banks  of  the  "  Hor-el- 
Ramle,"  in  the  Bilad  Nashou.  A  pelting  storm  of 
rain  and  sleet  obliged  the  naked  porters  to  seek 
shelter  in  an  adjacent  Zeriba ;  the  natives  flying 
upon  our  approach,  howled  and  screeched  all  night, 
but  did  not  dare  to  attack.  I  called  the  Sheik  to 
me  in  the  morning,  and  made  him  a  present  of  an 
extra  shirt  that  was  left  me  ;  and  he  went  off  per- 
fectly delighted  at  this  unexpected  compensation. 
On  the  16th,  after  leaving  "  Gebel-el-Kelb,"  we 
turned  north-west,  in  order  to  gain  the  river  at 
"  Gebel-el-Regaf,"  where  the  natives  told  us  the 
head-quarters  had  been  removed. 

We  crossed  the  swolleu  stream  of  the  Hor-el- 
Ramle  by  swimming.  "Ugunda"  was  borne  down 
by  the  rapid  current,  but  made  the  opposite  bank 
safely;  and  on  the  night  of  the  17th  we  espied 
the  white  tents  on  the  opposite  shore.  A  volley 
of  musketry  and  our  bugle-calls  were  heard;  but 
they  replied  that  they  could  not  come  to  us  (they 
had  no  boat),  the  river  here  being  very  wide  and 
deep.  In  reply  to  my  question  if  the  Pacha  was 
there  ?  they  replied  "  No."     I  therefore  sent  my 


AEEIVAL    AT   GONDOKORO.  209 

reports  about  midnight  by  an  Abide  to  Gondokoro, 
with  orders  to  dehver  them  at  an  early  hour  in  the 
morning.  A  night  of  horrors  was  passed  in  the 
low  marshy  ground,  where  myriads  of  mosquitoes 
rendered  sleep  impossible. 

On  the  morning  of  the  18th,  the  commandant 
of  the  post  at  Regaf  arrived,  having  procured  a 
boat.  Tiib  Agha  was  gushing  in  his  welcome  ;  he 
told  me  that  I  had  long  since  been  given  over  as 
dead,  but  that  a  vague  rumour  had  come  back 
with  the  Abides  who  had  taken  up  the  steamer, 
that  a  white  man  had  come  down  from  the  Lake 
by  the  river,  but  this  was  regarded  as  false.  He 
told  me  that  all  the  Europeans  had  died  soon 
after  their  arrival,  but  could  not  give  their  names. 
Anxious  almost  to  nervousness  to  get  back,  I  put 
my  column  in  motion  by  land  for  Gondokoro, 
accepting  the  proffered  boat  of  Tiib  Agha ;  and 
accompanied  by  Said  and  Abd-el-Rahman,  J 
pushed  off  and  down  the  stream ;  arriving  at  Gon- 
dokoro in  advance  of  my  men  at  sunset. 

The  Governor  General  received  me  with  the 
most  flattering  expressions;  my  reports  had  already 
made  him  acquainted  with  the  results  that  have 
been  here  detailed,  and  he  frankly  said  to  me, 
*'  You  have  done  more  than  any  man  ever  did 
here."  This  simple  acknowledgment  and  appre- 
ciation seemed  to  repay  me  for  the  fearful  price 
my  discoveries  had  cost. 

I  learned  here,  with  deep  regret,  the  death  of 


210  CENTRAL    AFRICA. 

Auguste  Linant,  in  whose  appointment  to  the 
expedition  I  had  been  chiefly  instrumental.  Anson 
and  De  Witt  were  dead.  Major  Campbell,  who 
also  had  arrived  during  my  absence,  had  been 
sent  down  to  Khartoum  in  an  almost  dying 
condition.  The  health  of  the  troops  was  de- 
plorable, many  of  them  were  dead  and  dying — 
proof  positive  that  Africa,  by  some  decree  of 
nature,  was  marked  as  the  exclusive  home  of  the 
negro.  I  had  looked  forward  to  finding  commu- 
nications from  home  and  friends.  There  were  no 
letters  for  me. 

Abou  Saoud  came  to  see  me,  and  to  welcome  me 
back.  From  the  very  great  dignity  with  which  he 
had  been  invested  on  his  arrival,  he  had  now  fallen 
into  disgrace. 

Once  more  at  Gondokoro,  I  looked  back  at  the 
six  months  of  absence  that  had  been — in  the  six 
hundred  miles  of  jungle  going  South  or  returning 
by  the  river — a  constant  battle  with  the  elements, 
storms,  wind,  and  rain ;  with  African  diplomacy, 
of  which  I  had  more  than  my  share  by  reason  of 
my  weakness  ;  with  famine  and  jungle  fever,  and 
battles  with  fierce  and  treacherous  tribes  of  sa- 
vages: I  felt  like  -^neas  of  old — ■ 

"  Jactate  ab  terra,  et  mare," 

that  I  had  miraculously  been  saved  by  a  "  vi 
superi"  from  a  cruej  fate  that  had  well-nigh  been 
the  result  of  my  hardihood  ;  and  like  him,  returned 


EEFLECTIONS.  211 

to  tell  my  strange  story  to  eager  and  wondering 
ears,  though  no  tender  love-stricken  Dido  was 
there  to  lend  her  sympathetic  ear  to  the  tale  of 
my  wanderings. 

Said  and  Abd-el-Rahman,  among  their  com- 
rades, had  become  the  heroes  of  the  hour,  and 
had  been  promoted  to  Sergeants  by  the  kindly 
action  of  the  Governor  General  for  their  bravery 
and  devotion ;  later  yet  higher  honours  awaited 
them  from  the  Khedive  himself  after  receiving  my 
report  of  their  heroism. 


CHAPTER  XVII. 

Interval  between  the  Uganda  expedition  and  the  expedition  to 
Makraka  Niam-Niam — Return  to  Khartoum — Despatches 
of  the  Governor  General  to  his  Highness — Reply  of  his 
Highness  the  Prince  Minister  of  War,  Hussein  Pacha, 
announcing  my  Nomination  as  Colonel,  and  Decoration — 
My  deplorable  State — Convalescence  and  dinner  at  Palace 
of  Djaffer  Pacha — Consul  General  Hanzell — Visit  of 
Abou  Saoud-  Return  to  Lado — Passing  exploration  of 
the  Saubat — Preparations  for  the  Expedition  to  Makraka 
Niam-Niam. 

On  the  20th  of  October,  by  advice  of  the  Governor 
General,  I  went  on  board  of  the  "  Bordene," 
that  would  take  me  to  Khartoum,  there  to  an-^ 
nounce  to  the  Government  the  results  of  my  Expe- 
dition, whilst  at  the  same  time  I  might  be  benefited 
by  the  change  of  air  ;  for  the  state  of  my  health 
was  precarious  in  the  extreme.  At  five  p.m. 
of  the  same  day  the  "  Bordene "  arrived  at 
Lado — which  had  been  designated  as  the  future 
head  -  quarters ;  since  Gondokoro  had  proved  a 
grave-yard  for  the  second  as  well  as  the  first 
Expedition.  Here  I  encountered  "  Gessi,"  the 
confidential  polyglot  of  languages  and  man-of-all- 


PERILOUS   POSITION   OF   OUR    STEAMER.  213 

work  of  tlie  Governor  General,  the  sole  survivor 
of  all  the  Europeans  who  made  a  part  of  the 
expedition,  since  onr  departure  from  Cairo,  and 
my  absence  in  Central  Africa.  His  reception  was 
of  the  most  enthusiastic  and  sympathetic  cha- 
racter. Whilst  waiting  to  "  wood  up,"  I  listened 
with  painful  interest  to  details  of  disease  and  death 
of  those  who  had  succumbed  to  the  fatal  climate. 
About  six  o'clock  on  the  afternoon  of  the  24th, 
the  "  Bordene "  was  suddenly  enclosed,  as  if  by 
magic,  in  the  fearful  embrace  of  the  "  sod,"  the 
matted  vegetable  matter  that  now  barred  the  way. 
The  river  disappeared,  whilst  on  all  sides  nothing 
was  to  be  seen  but  a  sea  of  grass.  The  position 
was  startling ;  not  alone  that  we  were  walled  in 
by  the  mass  of  floating  grass  that  threatened  to 
crush  the  steamer  like  an  egg — but  also  because 
should  we  be  kept  long  here  we  could  not  hope 
to  escape  death  from  the  pestiferous  malaria,  per- 
haps from  starvation.  On  board  there  were  a 
number  of  invalids,  Arab  soldiers,  of  whom  we 
buried  every  day  from  six  to  eight. 

The  Captain,  Abdul  Al,  overcome  with  fear, 
rushed  from  the  bridge  of  the  steamer,  and  ap- 
proaching me  as  I  left  the  cabin,  cried,  "  Yeamii 
Eh,  ye  Bey"  (What  shall  I  do,  0  Bey)  ?  "  Can  you 
back  her  ?"  I  replied ;  and  rushing  upon  the  bridge, 
I  took  charge  of  the  steamer,  and  in  a  stentorian 
voice  gave  the  order  to  "  turn  astern  !  "  Not  a 
moment  was  to  be  lost ;  right  ahead  of  me  in  the 

Q 


214  CENTRAL    AFRICA. 

darkening  twilight,  that  exists  only  a  moment 
between  sundown  and  night,  was  a  crevasse  that 
clearly  marked  the  way.  "  Full  speed  "  was  given, 
and  with  every  pound  of  pressure  on,  the  "  Bor- 
dene" drove  ahead  into  the  gutta-percha-like  mass. 
It  yielded,  and  away  we  went  and  cleared  the 
"  sod,"  that  soon  would  have  crushed  us  in  its 
fatal  embrace.  All  hands  cried  "  Mashallah " 
(thank  God) !  with  a  hearty  good  will. 

A  description  of  these  fifteen  hundred  miles 
between  Gondokoro  and  Khartoum  has  already 
been  given  in  preceding  chapters.  A  serpentine 
river,  filled  with  crocodile  and  hippopotami,  and 
banks  covered  with  negroes  of  tribes  of  Kych, 
Dinka,  Chillouk,  whose  misery,  starvation,  and 
brute-like  appearance  is  in  thorough  sympathy 
with  the  interminable  marshes.  The  cow  is  his 
divinity;  whilst  to  the  sustenance  derived  from 
the  milk  (of  which  the  milk  makes  only  a  part), 
the  starving  negro  has  only  the  uncertain  chase 
of  the  hippopotami  and  crocodile ;  the  eggs  of  the 
latter  being  chiefly  sought  after  as  the  means  of 
nourishment. 

The  wood  stations  on  the  Bahr-el-Abiad,  are 
"  Bor,  Chambe,"  and  the  mouth  of  the  Saubat. 
These  places  furnish  the  sole  clumps  of  trees,  that 
supply  wood  for  the  furnace  of  the  steamers. 
The  quality  of  wood  is  principally  soont,  whilst 
from  Bor  southward,  the  wood  is  almost 
entirely    ebony ;     the  transportation      of    which 


THE    GUINEA- WORM.  215 

miglit  be  made,  as  it  has  been  elsewhere  profit- 
able to  the  shipper. 

The  negro  employes  in  the  service  of  these 
steamers,  in  the  navigation  of  the  river,  are 
chiefly  "  Dinkas,"  who,  though  natives,  are  never- 
theless subject  to  the  often  fatal  attacks  of  the 
guinea- worm ;  which  if  not  treated  with  address 
in  the  extraction,  renders  the  subject  an  invalid 
for  life.  The  worm,  embedded  in  the  cuticle, 
shows  only  its  head  upon  the  surface.  The 
sufferer  ties  this  to  a  piece  of  wood  by  means 
of  a  thread,  which  by  being  wound  slowly  every 
day,  gradually  extracts  the  body  of  the  worm. 
Too  great  a  tension,  however,  may  sever  the  body 
from  the  head;  when  the  patient  in  many  cases 
is  doomed  to  great  suffering,  and  oftentimes  to 
loss  of  the  limb. 

The  waters  of  the  Bahr-el-Abiad,  discoloured 
with  vegetable  matter  coming  from  Lake  Ibra- 
him, are  highly  impregnated  with  animalculas  : 
and  in  order  to  purify  it,  I  have  very  frequently 
caused  it  to  be  boiled,  whether  for  internal  or 
external  use. 

Flies,  ants,  and  mosquitoes  are  the  natural  pests 
of  Africa.  To  evade  the  attacks  of  the  latter, 
the  negroes  have  no  other  defence  than  to  keep 
themselves  perpetually  surrounded  by  a  circle  of 
fire,  on  which  the  dung  of  the  cow  is  thrown, 
thus  forming  a  dense  smoke  that  from  its  stifling 
odour  shields  from  the   enemy,  while  the  whole 


216  CENTRAL   AFEICA. 

body  is  smeared  with  aslies,  and  filtli  of  beasts,  of 
the  most  revolting  odour. 

At  the  junction  of  the  Saubat  the  *'Bordene" 
arrived  on  the  night  of  the  27th  (midnight) ;  here 
we  found  the  steamer  "  Telawaheen,"  bound 
south,  having  on  board  Ernest  Linant,  and  two 
Enghsh  officers.  The  former  was  here  informed 
of  the  death  of  his  brother  Auguste,  who  had 
died  of  fever  one  month  before  at  Gondokoro.  I 
bad  on  board  two  dogs  that  belonged  to  him. 
Ernest  begged  me  to  keep  them  as  souvenirs  of 
his  brother.  Both  "Goorah-Goorah"  and  "Ticki- 
Ticki "  accompanied  me  afterwards  on  the  return 
to  Lado.  The  latter  died  at  Makraka,  and  ivas 
eaten  by  the  Niam-Niams. 

On  the  night  of  the  28th,  we  arrived  at  Fashoda, 
where  we  stopped  for  wood. 

Fashoda,  has  already  been  casually  referred 
to ;  it  may  not  be  amiss,  however,  to  add  that  it 
formerly  was  used  as  a  penal  colony  for  political 
or  military  offenders.  The  march  of  civilization 
has  now  begun  to  make  Fashoda  a  tolerably 
pleasant  place  of  residence  ;  for  here  may  be  seen 
the  inevitable  Greek  merchant,  who  keeps  his 
"  bacal,"  and  wherein  may  be  found  canned  fruit 
and  meats,  and  more  than  all  the  much  prized 
"  Raki,"  and  the  intolerable  "  Samian  wine,"  that 
I  love  only  in  classic  song. 

Here  I  observed  my  whole  body  had  commenced 
to  swell ;  and  the  same  symptoms  experienced  by 


AREIVAL   AT   KHAETOUM.  217 

Adam  and  Kellerman  began  to  assume  in  me 
alarming  proportions — the  effect  of  constant  fever 
and  bad  diet. 

On  leaving  Faslioda,  the  Eeis  of  the  steamer 
became  particularly  drunk,  and  particularly  in- 
solent to  the  captain.  The  Reis  of  a  boat  on  the 
Nile,  I  repeat  here,  is  at  all  times  a  most  important 
personage;  nowhere  is  this  so  true  as  on  the 
Bahr-el-Abiad.  "  Mezouk  "  was  no  exception  to 
this  rule;  and  he  now  commenced  to  show  his 
bad  qualities.  As  he  landed  the  steamer  on  a 
sand-bar,  though  weak  and  ill  I  was  called  to 
the  scene,  for  the  captain  was  utterly  powerless 
to  maintain  order  :  as  Mezouk,  a  swarthy  powerful 
black,  took  command,  and  laughed  to  derision 
the  captain  and  crew.  In  a  moment  of  passion 
I  seized  him,  and  held  him  over  the  boat's  rail, 
where  on  each  side  might  be  seen  the  yawning 
jaws  of  numerous  crocodiles,  or  the  roaring 
hippopotami,  that  would  soon  have  made  short 
work  of  him.  Said  and  Abd-el-Rahman  took  him 
from  me  ;  and  Mezouk  went  to  his  post  a  sobered 
and  a  wiser  man. 

On  the  6th  of  November  the  "  Bordene"  reached 
Khartoum.  As  we  steamed  up  the  Bahr-el-Azrak, 
and  looked  upon  the  gathering  crowd  upon  the 
banks,  among  whom  were  a  great  many  European 
faces,  I  felt  a  glow  of  pleasure  and  exuberance 
of  spirits,  to  which  the  grave  events  that  had 
marked  my  absence  had  made  me  long  a  stranger. 


218  CENTEAL   AFRICA. 

The  transition  from  benighted  Africa  to  the 
threshold  of  civilization  once  again,  had  been  a 
dream,  whose  realization  I  could  scarcely  believe. 
Moored  to  the  quay,  I  immediately  received  the 
visits  of  the  Consul  General  of  Austria  and  France, 
M.  Hanzell,  Monseigneur  Camboui,  the  Apostolic 
Vicar  of  the  Austrian  Mission,  M.  Giegler  of  the 
Telegraph,  and  M.  Lumbroso  of  the  post,  all  of 
whom  extended  me  their  felicitations,  and  kind 
expressions  for  my  safe  return. 

The  telegraph  was  quickly  in  requisition,  and 
on  the  eve  of  the  Bairam  fete,  His  Highness  the 
Khedive  received  despatches  from  the  Governor 
General,  giving  a  synopsis  of  the  results  of  the 
expedition,  in  which  he  was  pleased  to  use 
the  most  flattering  terms  in  reference  to  its 
success. 

Poor  Campbell  had  died  here,  on  his  return  a 
month  before  from  Gondokoro,  of  typhus  fever. 
Transferred  from  the  steamer  to  the  Austrian 
Mission,  he  was  kindly  cared  for  by  Monseigneur 
Camboni,.  his  aids,  and  the  sisters  attached  to  the 
institution,  who  in  their  merciful  dispensations  en- 
deavoured to  alleviate  his  sufferings.  Their  tender 
care,  however,  came  too  late:  for  he  was  a  doomed 
man  ere  he  entered  the  hospitable  gates.  A  genial 
companion  and  earnest  friend,  I  felt  his  death 
keenly,  as  well  as  that  of  Linant,  for  they  both 
had  been  appointed  through  my  intervention. 

The  first    acknowledgement   of    my   telegram 


DECORATED   BY   THE   KHEDIVE.  219 

came  directly  from  His  Highness  the  Khedive, 
vp-ho  thanked  me  for  my  services  to  the  country 
in  the  most  flattering  terms.  On  the  17th,  His 
Highness  the  Prince  Minister  of  War,  Hussein 
Pacha,  telegraphed  me  as  follows  : — 

"  The  Khedive  confers  upon  you  the  grade  of 
Colonel,  and  the  decoration  of  the  Medjidieh  of 
the  third  class,  with  firman  and  decree,  which 
will  all  be  sent  by  post." 

The  same  despatch  asked  the  name  and  rank 
of  the  two  soldiers  who  had  accompanied  me. 
Here  was  a  prompt  appreciation  of  my  services  : 
and  even  my  two  soldiers  were  not  forgotten,  as 
was  proved  by  the  query. 

These  and  many  other  telegrams  of  felicitation 
from  high  functionaries  and  friends,  whilst  an 
earnest  of  the  appreciation  of  my  work,  were 
potent  agents  in  the  absence  of  an  experienced 
physician,  in  awakening  in  me  new  life ;  and  in 
stemming  the  current  of  disease,  that  I  believe 
sincerely,  without  the  excitement  and  pleasure 
attending  this  reception  would  have,  as  indeed  it 
threatened,  taken  a  fatal  character.  I  was  swollen 
to  such  an  extent,  that  I  could  not  wear  •my 
ordinary  dress ;  and  my  case  seemed  really  hope- 
less. 

About  this  time,  news  was  received  here  of  the 
capture  of  Fasha,  the  capital  of  Darfour,  by 
Ismail  Pacha  Ayoub,  the  Governor  General  of  the 
Province,  acting  there  in  conjunction  with  Zuber 


220  CENTEAL   AFETCA. 

Bey,  a  former  Dongolowee  chief.  The  Sultan  had 
been  killed,  and  in  fact  there  had  been  a  complete, 
and  decisive  victory. 

Khartonm,  was  illuminated  for  a  period  of  three 
nights,  and  fetes  and  festivities  were  given  in 
honour  of  this  very  important  accession  to  the 
territory  of  Egypt — important,  not  alone  as  a 
great  mine  of  commerce  and  wealth,  but  that  it 
struck  a  final  blow  at  the  slave-trade,  that  every- 
where else  had  been  checked  by  the  occupation  of 
the  country  by  the  government  troops. 

I  had  now  commenced  to  improve  in  health  and 
spii'its,  under  a  generous  diet.  I  drank  freely  of 
Bordeaux,  and  "  Burton  on  Trent,"  that  by  chance 
had  found  its  way  here ;  though  wines  of  an  in- 
ferior quality,  and  Bass's  beer,  could  be  obtained 
in  any  quantity.  In  fact,  in  Khartoum  almost 
anything  could  be  procured,  with  a  slight  advance 
on  prices  in  Cairo. 

On  the  19th,  I  invited  the  oflScers  of  the 
garrison,  the  Hokomdar  (Governor  General)  and 
the  chief  functionaries,  M.  Hanzell  and  others,  to 
meet  me  at  dinner  at  the  Palace  of  Djaffer  Pacha, 
where  I  resided,  on  the  opposite  bank.  Accom- 
panied by  the  post  band,  the  festivities  were  kept 
up  until  a  late  hour,  when  the  numerous  guests 
recrossed  the  river  to  their  homes.  So  large  a 
concourse,  in  which  were  a  great  many  Europeans, 
was  marked  as  a  great  event  in  Khartoum.  An 
outpost  of  civilization,  I  can  readily  understand 


KHARTOUM   THE    OUTPOST   OF   CIVILIZATION.       221 

that  tlie  traveller,  fresli  from  Europe,  may  speak 
lightly,   even  despairingly  of  the  place ;    to    me 
however,   escaped  as  if  by  a  miracle   from   the 
horrors  of  African  life,  I  welcomed  Khartoum  as 
a  perfect  El  Dorado — its   20,000  people  making- 
it  a  city !     Its  many   shops    of   "  Raki,"  ale,    to- 
bacco, clothing,  in  fact  every  necessary,  took  pro- 
portions as    great,  in  fancy,  as  the  shops  in  the 
Palais  Royal !  its  gardens  of  oranges  and  citron, 
and  markets  of  fruit  and  vegetables,  an  Elysian 
Field ;  its  great  high  banks,  lined  with  the  stately 
palm,   an   Italian  boulevard;  the   air  that    blew 
across  the  desert  on  the  opposite  side,  a  healing 
wind  that  restored  me  to  life — finally,  I  could  not 
understand  how  Khartoum  could  be  termed  "  the 
pest-house  of  Central  Africa." 
.  His  Highness  the  Khedive  of  Egypt  had  given 
the  most  stringent    orders    for  the    suppression 
of  the    slave-trade ;   and  of  late  years  there  had 
been  so  great  a  falling  off  in  consequence,  that 
slavery    was    to    be    seen    here    in   a    mild  cha- 
racter, if  indeed  it    merited    at    all    the    name, 
since  a   black  held   in    service    was  free   to    go, 
on  application  to   the   military  authority.      The 
system    is    there    almost    patriarchal,    and    the 
ignorant  savage  becomes  a  member  of  a  house- 
hold,  and  is  civilized  to  a  certain  extent  under 
its  influence ;  while  the  tenure  of  his  bondage  is 
only  nominal.     The  value   of  labour  is   scarcely 
felt  in  Khartoum ;  and  the   slavery  that  existed 


222  CENTRAL   AFRICA. 

there  before  was  never  anything  but  a  luxury ! 
Money  having  a  greater  value  there  to-day,  as 
competition  in  trade  grows  stronger,  the  desire 
for  a  numerous  retinue  of  servants  has  decreased  ; 
and  the  slave  merchant  has  turned  his  attention 
to  other  trades. 

On  the  28th  of  ISTovember,  Abou  Saoud  had 
arrived  by  nugger  from  Gondokoro,  from  whence 
he  had  been  sent  away  in  disgrace.  Abou,  to  the 
great  cost  of  the  Government,  had  been  made  to 
figure  largely  in  a  field  where,  by  reason  of  his 
hostility  to  the  interests  of  the  Government,  he 
should  not  have  been  regarded  but  with  sus- 
picion. This  hostility  may  be  briefly  explained. 
As  agent  of  the  house  of  Agad  and  Co.  (and 
brother-in-law  as  well),  Abou  represented  the 
interests  of  that  house,  in  the  exploitation  of  ivory 
in  the  regions  of  the  Bahr-el-Abiad  en  route  from 
Gondokoro,  his  friends  Suleiman  and  Wat-el-Mek 
having  direct  command  of  the  Dongolowee  camps 
of  irregular  soldiers  before  referred  to. 

"  The  Expedition  for  the  better  government  of 
the  Equatorial  Provinces  of  the  Equator  "  obliged 
the  Government  of  Egypt  to  absorb  this  "  squatter 
sovereignty,"  that  was  exercised  by  these  men ; 
and  repress  disorder,  and  disabuse  the  minds  of 
these  nomads,  of  their  pretended  authority,  and 
ownership  of  these  countries. 

It  will  appear  strange  that  Abou,  who  had 
undoubtedlv  been  hostile  to   Sir   Samuel  Baker, 


CHARACTER   OP   ABOU    SAOUD.  223 

and  necessarily  hostile  to  the  interests  of  the 
Government  represented  by  him  (involving  no 
insignificant  sum  of  money),  should  be  made  the 
basis  of  animadversion  upon  that  Government, 
as  will  appear  in  the  following  quotation  from 
Sir  Samuel  Baker :  "  The  last  appearance  is  the 
appointment  of  Abou  Saoud  to  a  post  in  the 
present  expedition.  Thus  the  great  slaver  of  the 
White  Nile  is  rewarded." 

His  second  nomination  really  was  made  upon 
the  'personal  and  urgent  request  of  the  chief  of  that 
expedition;  and  Abou  was  accordingly  released 
from  prison  in  Cairo,  and  following  the  expedition, 
had  joined  it  at  Gondokoro.  Once  there,  and 
clothed  with  somewhat  extravagant  authority, 
he  had  very  probably,  being  of  a  weak  and  vain 
character,  given  himself  a  great  many  airs,  and 
thus  became  a  source  of  annoyance  to  the  Governor 
General,  and  he  was  summarily  dismissed.  This 
seemed  the  head  and  front  of  his  offending. 

Ofl&cious  zealots,  on  the  other  hand,  have 
endeavoured  in  newspaper  correspondence  to 
make  a  martyr  of  Abou — in  attacking  Sir  Samuel 
Baker.  He  is  spoken  of  as  "a  young  man  of 
noble  countenance  and  race."  He  has  nothing  of 
these  characteristics ;  but  his  face,  strongly  marked 
with  sensuality  and  a  sneaking  smile,  would  seem 
in  a  minor  degree  to  represent  a  mixture  of  cha- 
racter such  as  might  be  imagined  as  the  result 
of   an   amalgamation  of  a  "  Latter  Day  Saint  " 


224  CENTRAL   AEEICA. 

and  a  "  Fatlier  Joseph."  There  was  no  doubt  in 
my  mind  that  he  secretly  harboured  the  idea  of 
exploiting  these  lands — "  Elysian  fields  "  to  these 
lawless  nomads— born  in  many  cases  in  its 
jungles. 

Behind  Abou  were  Suleiman  and  Wat-el-Mek, 
his  old  lieutenants,  who,  perhaps,  whispered  inces- 
santly in  his  ear — thus  feeding  his  ambition  of 
one  day  being  king  of  Central  Africa. 

This  was  my  opinion  of  Abou.  In  a  conver- 
sation I  asked  him  very  abruptly  if  he  had  not 
secretly  incited  Keba  Rega  to  attack  me  at  Mrooli ; 
knowing  full  well  the  friendship  that  had  existed 
between  them  since  the  battle  of  Masindi,  where 
Sir  Samuel  had  allowed  himself  to  be  beguiled 
into  security  by  the  wily  Abou.  Of  course  he 
denied  this;  and  entertained  me  with  the  most 
flattering  expressions  as  to  the  hazardous  enter- 
prise I  had  successfully  accomplished.  The  inter- 
view ended,  we  parted  pleasantly,  and  I  saw  the 
famous  Abou  no  more.  My  health  had  now 
become  much  improved,  though  at  times  I  suf- 
fered severely.  No  letters  had  reached  me  from 
home,  and  my  anxiety  consequent  upon  this  dis- 
appointment, added  greatly  to  my  physical  suffer- 
ings. The  house  that  I  occupied,  on  the  desert 
plain  of  the  opposite  shore,  was  delightfully 
situated  and  healthful.  The  air  blew  cold  and 
refreshing  through  its  corridors,  and  memory 
reverts  to-day  with  pleasure  to  the  hours  passed 


DEPAETDEE   FEOM    KHAETOUM.  225 

there  witli  that  delicious  sense  of  repose  known 
only  to  the  convalescent. 

The  view  was  really  charming;  following  the 
desert,  bordered  by  a  bluish  veil  of  haze,  the  eye 
met  the  Mle  below  the  junction  of  the  Bahr-el- 
Abiad  and  the  Bahr-el-Azrak,  making  its  serpen- 
tine way  northward  toward  Berber  through  narrow 
mountain  gorges.  The  white  line  of  the  Bahr-el- 
Abiad,  as  it  ran  by  with  the  pure  waters  of  the 
Bahr-el-Azrak,  on  whose  grass-covered  shores 
were  great  flocks  of  geese  and  fowls,  and  Khar- 
toum itself  with  its  tall  palms  and  luxuriant 
gardens,  looked  like  some  fairy  scene,  to  an 
imagination  that  sighed  for  the  haunts  of  civiliza- 
tion, and  from  which  duty,  not  enthusias^l,  alone 
separated  me.  My  term  of  rest,  however,  was 
drawing  to  a  close.  The  self-imposed  task  of 
sending  reinforcements  of  troops  in  the  service  of 
the  Equatorial  Provinces,  had  resulted  in  my  hav- 
ing authority  to  choose  450  men,  that  I  proposed  to 
embark  in  nuggers  filled  with  "  dourah  "  and  tow 
them  to  Gondokoro,  with  the  several  steamers  at 
my  disposal,  where  once  returned,  I  should  pro- 
bably be  called  to  new  fields  of  adventure  and 
discovery. 

On  the  15th  of  December,  all  preparations  for 
departure  having  been  completed,  I  left  Khartoum 
on  the  steamer  "  Bordene,"  the  nuggers  of  grain 
and  soldiers  having  been  put  en  route  several  days 
before,  with  a  fair  wind.     They  were  ordered  to 


226  CENTEAL   AFRICA. 

rendezvous  at  tlie  mouth  of  tlie  Saubat,  fro.u 
whence — the  river  becoming  tortuous — I  should 
be  obhged  to  take  them  in  tow. 

Dr.  Ferit,  a  young  medical  man  (Arab),  who 
had  been  in  years  past  on  the  staff  of  H.  E. 
Rachid  Pacha,  commanding  division  at  Alexan- 
dria at  the  same  time  as  myself,  had  been  assigned 
to  the  expedition  during  my  absence.  He  had 
carefully  treated  Major  Campbell,  and  would  now 
return  to  duty  at  Gondokoro.  He  spoke  French 
fluently,  and  his  genial  companionship  was  always 
a  source  of  great  pleasure.  Poor  fellow,  I  learned 
that  he,  and  many  other  officers,  has  since  died 
of  fever. 

Many  persons  came  to  bid  us  adieu,  the  greater 
number  of  whom  doubtless  thouQ^ht  me  mad  to 
return  when  I  was  as  yet  far  from  convalescent. 
Confident  in  my  lucky  star,  I  had  none  of  these 
feelings.  Soon  Khartoum  was  lost  to  view  as  we 
left  the  clear  blue  waters  of  the  Bahr-el-Azrak, 
and  turned  our  head  southward  to  stem  the  swift 
discoloured  waters  of  the  Bahr-el-Abiad. 

On  the  22nd  we  arrived  at  Fashoda,  where  we 
stopped  for  wood,  attacked  incessantly  by  enor- 
mous flies,  whose  bite  is  exceedingly  painful,  no 
less  than  myriads  of  mosquitoes  that  are  almost 
insupportable  here,  as  along  the  entire  distance  to 
Gondokoro. 

The  24th  of  December  we  arrived  at  the  junction 
of  the  river  Saubat  with   the  Bahi'-el-Abiad,  at 


THE    "FREEDMANS    BUREAU.  227 

least  500  miles  soiitli  of  Khartoum,  tlie  point  tliat 
marks  the  limit  of  the  Khartoum  government, 
and  from  whence  begins  the  government  of  the 
Equatorial  Provinces. 

Here,  on  a  small  area  of  ground  that  rises  above 
the  sea  of  marshes  on  all  sides,  is  a  detachment  of 
soldiers,  whose  huts  are  made  of  grass  and  reeds, 
of  cone-like  shape — the  common  architecture  of  all 
the  negroes  of  Central  Africa.  This  station,  in 
common  with  others  along  the  Balir-el-Abiad, 
serves  as  a  vedette  in  the  suppression  of  the  slave- 
trade,  at  the  same  time  furnishing  wood  as  fuel 
for  the  passing  steamers,  the  consumption  of 
which  is  naturally  very  great,  while  the  stunted 
and  uncertain  growth  found  only  at  rare  intervals 
will,  in  the  future,  augment  the  difficulties  of  steam 
navigation  between  the  Saubat  and  Gondokoro. 

Here  the  Dinka  and  Chillouk  of  the  Bahr-el- 
Abiad  and  the  Nouers  of  the  Saubat,  "  happy 
contrabands  "  and  refugees  from  the  slavery  and 
tyranny  of  their  Sheik,  find  refuge  and  protection 
by  "Meri"  (government),  who  is  thus  obliged,  at 
no  little  expense,  to  feed  in  idleness  these  wretched 
starving  creatures  that  an  ungracious  nature  has 
so  ill  provided  for,  in  its  denial  of  home  and  pro- 
perty. The  "  Freedman's  Bureau  "  at  the  Saubat, 
like  the  Freedman's  Bureau  at  Washington,  pro- 
mises to  be  in  the  future  a  source  of  great  expense 
to  the  Government  of  Egypt  when  it  may  become 
generally  known  that  they  are  "  emancipated." 


228  CENTRAL   AFRICA. 

In  the  luxury  of  idleness  there,  one  may  see  tlie 
Dinka,  Chillouk,  and  Nouers,  forgetting  their 
savage  rivalries,  engage  in  dance  and  song  around 
the  fire  at  night;  their  gyrations  and  contortions 
of  body  keep  perfect  time  to  an  inimitable  melody, 
wild  and  weird,  as  they  move  in  circle  accompanied 
by  their  "  bints  "  in  puris  naturalibus,  for  these 
people,  whether  male  or  female,  do  not  aff"ect  any 
dress  whatever,  regarding  it  as  a  sign  of  weakness. 
In  the  flickering  torch-light,  reflected  upon  their 
black  bodies  and  hideous  faces,  they  look  like 
demons  dancing  in  some  mad  bacchanalian  scene 
in  Orcus. 

My  soldiers  had  arrived  here  safely  with  a  fair 
wind,  and  disembarked,  waiting  to  be  towed  by 
the  "  Bordene,"  the  "Mansourah,"  and  the 
"  Telawaheen." 

The  officer  commanding  the  post  informed  me 
that  a  body  of  Dongolowee  soldiers,  in  the  service 
of  the  station,  had  been  sent  to  a  point  far  up  the 
Saubat  for  the  purpose  of  trading  for  ivory,  and 
that,  surrounded  by  the  hostile  Nouer,  they  would 
either  be  starved  to  death  or  massacred.  Leaving 
my  soldiers  for  a  probable  absence  of  three  days, 
I  made  a  detail  of  twenty  men  and  a  lieutenant, 
and  taking  in  tow  a  boat  loaded  with  150  ardebs 
of  dourah,  I  caused  the  "  Bordene  "  to  steam  up 
the  Saubat,  to  their  relief.  I  extract  from 
my  itinerary  as  follows  : — 

December  25th. — *'  Christmas  Day,"  but  what  a 


CAMP   OF   THE    DONGOLOWEE.  229 

cheerless  one  !  The  river  on  each  side  presents 
the  same  howling  waste  as  on  the  Bahr-el-Abiad, 
the  same  flat  marshes  through  which  the  river 
breaks  its  crooked  way,  followed  by  the  eye  miles 
and  miles  over  the  pestiferous  plain.  Here 
and  there  are  collections  of  huts  on  the  banks, 
where  are  assembled  the  "  Nouers,"  who  yell  de- 
fiance at  us  as  we  pass.  Dr.  Ferit  and  myself  en- 
deavour, though  the  effort  is  a  feeble  one,  to  draw 
comfort  from  the  absorption  of  a  decoction,  sold  as 
St.  Julian  in  Khartoum,  but  which  has  decidedly 
the  taste  of  an  inferior  quality  of  black  ink. 

December  26th. — At  mid-day  we  arrive  at  the 
camp  of  the  Dongolowee,  called  "  Boul-Boul,"  or 
"  Manshiah,"  about  300  miles  from  the  junction 
with  the  Bahr-el-Abiad,  a  point  to  which  no 
explorer  had  till  now  reached. 

The  camp,  composed  of  eighty  Dongolowee,  had 
been  seriously  menaced  by  the  savages ;  but  this 
timely  relief  of  a  large  quantity  of  doui-ah  saved 
them  from  starvation ;  a  seemingly  inevitable  fate, 
since,  having  no  boat,  they  could  not  evacuate 
their  post  and  return  by  the  river,  and  they  feared 
a  sortie  by  land  because  of  the  long  and  difl&cult 
road  to  be  traversed  to  the  Saubat  junction,  and 
the  countless  and  fierce  "Nouers"  that  would 
render  the  attempts  perilous  in  the  extreme. 
Provided  with  dourah  and  a  boat,  they  assured 
me  of  their  perfect  capability  to  hold  the  place,  or 
to  return  if  they  could  not  succeed  in  establishinff 


230  CENTRAL    AFRICA. 

friendly  relations.  In  order  to  aid  tliem  in  tlie 
latter  I  made  overtures  to  the  hostile  chief,  and 
succeeded  in  establishing  a  quasi  treaty  of  peace, 
by  some  slight  presents,  with  a  promise  of  the 
much  prized  red  cloth  in  exchange  for  ivory. 

These  people  told  me  of  a  river  coming  from 
the  north  and  falling  into  the  Saubat,  only  six 
hours  away  from  the  direction  indicated ;  I  sup- 
posed it  to  be  an  effluent  of  the  Bahr-el-Azrak, 
and  that  the  Saubat,  extending  eastward  by  south, 
that  it  branched  into  two  large  streams  at  a  point 
thirteen  days  distant,  and  that  there  the  Gallas 
or  "  Habisch,"  as  they  are  termed  in  common 
with  the  Abyssinians,  came  to  traffic  at  a  village 
called  Kam-Kom.  From  the  depth  of  the  river  I 
had  no  doubt  of  its  perfect  navigability,  and  re- 
gretted that  the  soldiers,  whom  I  had  left  at  the 
station,  compelled  my  return,  since  I  could  not 
leave  them  long  at  that  unhealthy  post;  other- 
wise, I  should  have  continued  a  voyage  that 
promised,  under  the  easiest  circumstances,  the 
probable  discovery  of  its  sources,  and  its  proper 
relation  to  the  Bahr-el-Abiad.  It  was,  therefore, 
with  great  regret  that  at  midnight  of  the  27th, 
the  boat's  crew  being  unable  to  sleep  on  account 
of  the  mosquitoes,  I  ordered  steam,  and  turned 
head  down  stream,  running  with  the  curi-ent  at 
the  rate  of  fifteen  knots  per  hour,  reaching  the 
Saubat  station  on  the  evening  of  the  28th.  The 
Sheik    of    the    Dongolowees    returned   with    me 


PESTILENTIAL   EANKS    OF  THE   EAHR-EL-ABIAD.      231 

in  order  to  procure  tlie  articles  I  had  promised  for 
the  exploitation  of  the  ivory  of  those  regions. 
Inhabiting  the  country  since  childhood,  he  told 
me  of  a  route  a  few  miles  from  the  Saubat  junction 
that,  during  the  dry  season,  could  be,  and  had 
been  traversed  habitually  as  far  as  Bor  and  Gondo- 
koro,  but  that  during  the  rainy  season  the  road 
was  impassable.  A  knowledge  of  this  would  doubt- 
less have  saved  Sir  Samuel  Baker  the  disastrous 
delay  at  his  camp  at  Tewficky^h,  in  April,  1870, 
where,  oTaliged  to  desist  from  the  attempt  to  re- 
move the  sod  in  the  Bahr-el-Abiad  that  barred 
his  passage  southward,  he  encamped  on  the 
banks  of  that  river,  whose  pestilential  marshes 
made  sad  havoc  among  his  numerous  personnel 
and  troops.  Solicitous  for  the  health  of  my  Arab 
soldiers,  to  whom  this  long  route  had  always 
proved  in  previous  convoys  exceedingly  per- 
nicious, I  lost  no  time  in  re-embarking  them, 
and  taking  them  in  tow,  proceeded  up  the  Bahr-el- 
Abiad  toward  Gondokoro  on  the  morning  of  the 
29th.  Goorah-Goorah  and  Ticki-Ticki,  my  two 
dogs  already  referred  to,  made  night  hideous 
with  their  piteous  howls  as  they  raced  and  tore  up 
and  down  the  steamer  in  frantic,  but  vain  effort?, 
to  escape  the  attacks  of  the  mosquitoes  that  mado 
this  place  a  hell  on  earth,  whether  for  man  or 
beast.  I  had  arranged  a  mosquito  net  to  protect 
them,  but  their  dogships,  as  well  as  myself,  broke 
from  this  useless  cover;  they  to  rush  madly  up 


232  CENTRAL   APEICA. 

and  down,  whilst  my  only  resource  was  to  smoke 
incessantly  in  pacing  to  and  fro,  until  daylight 
brought  a  cessation  of  these  attacks.  I  quote 
from  diary  here  : — 

*'  December  31s^. — I  had  nearly  forgotten  that 
the  cycle  of  time  had  made  its  round,  and  that  the 
year  1874  would  soon  pass  and  go,  '  glimmering 
through  the  dream  of  things  that  were.'  Here, 
alone,  surrounded  by  an  infecund  and  terrible 
order  of  nature,  a  real  picture  of  an  imaged  Styx, 
memory  turns  as  if  from  some  horrid  dream,  and 
projecting  itself  over  these  gloomy  wastes  that 
now,  at  night,  are  lit  up  by  the  fitful  flash  of 
countless  fire-flies,  into  the  world  beyond  where 
the  season  is  a  joyous  one,  and  picture  the  fireside 
around  which  family  and  friends  are  gathered, 
and  from  which  I  am  going  farther  still  at  every 
revolution  of  the  wheel  that,  amid  the  stillness  of 
the  night,  seems  to  beat  a  tattoo  to  all  these 
memories  that  are  'sicklied  o'er  by  the  pale  cast 
of  thought'  as  the  uncertain  future  rises  before 
me." 

The  3rd  of  January,  1875,  we  arrived  at 
Chambe,  a  knoll  of  wooded  land  that  rises  from 
the  marshes,  affording  fuel  for  passing  steamers. 
A  detachment  of  soldiers  were  here  placed  for 
cutting  this  wood,  as  well  as  to  form  a  depot  for 
the  ivory  that  expeditionary  bands  of  Dongo- 
lowee  might  bring  from  the  Niam-Niam  and  Mon- 
butto     countries,    to     which    a    road    had    been 


THE    ZEEIBA   ATTACKED    BY   A    LTOX.  233 

known  to  these  people  in  this  trade  since  many 
years.  One  of  these  corps  had  just  arrived,  and 
gave  me  very  interesting  details  of  curious  tribes 
encountered.  They  had  brought  with  them  a 
Ticki-Ticki,  or  Akka  girl,  of  from  six  to  eight 
years  of  age  apparently,  the  general  form  and 
characteristics  of  a  Lilliputian  race  were  to  be 
seen  as  in  the  photograph  of  a  full  developed 
Akka  woman,  given  in  these  pages,  which  I 
brought  back  with  me  from  a  subsequent  expedi- 
tion to  Makraka  Niam-Niam,  and  who,  as  well 
as  the  infant  girl,  were  presented  to  His  Highness 
the  Khedive. 

At  midnight  of  the  4th,  whilst  still  at  the 
station  awaiting  the  requisite  quantity  of  wood,  I 
was  awakened  by  a  perfect  fusillade  of  arms  from 
the  camp  situated  close  upon  the  bank  to  which  the 
"  Bordene  "  was  moored.  Hurriedly  leaving  my 
couch  in  the  saloon  of  the  steamer  I  ran  toward 
the  camp,  accompanied  by  Said  and  Abd-el- 
Rahman,  supposing  that  an  attack  had  been  made 
by  the  natives.  The  officer  told  me  that  the 
firing  was  due  to  the  pursuit  of  a  lion  that  had 
scaled  the  high  palisade  of  grass  that  surrounded 
the  Zeriba,  and  had  attacked  three  negro  children 
that  lay  sleeping  at  the  door  of  a  hut,  and  that, 
having  bit  and  lacerated  two,  he  had  succeeded  in 
escaping  with  the  third.  Alarmed  by  the  cries  of 
pain  and  terror,  the  soldiers  had  quickly  rallied  ; 
but  were  not  successful  in  the  rescue  on  account 


234  CENTRAL   AFEIOA. 

of  the  darkness,  tliat  rendered  objects  but  a  few 
paces  distant  invisible.  In  the  morning,  in 
making  a  detour  of  the  place,  I  discovered  the 
mutilated  head  of  the  boy  who,  notwithstanding 
the  discharge  of  rifles,  had  been  devoured  within 
a  few  paces  of  the  wall :  an  attack  that  for 
audacity  would  seem  to  refute  the  insinuation  of 
cowardice,  that  has  been  sought  to  be  made 
by  enthusiastic  hunters  in  detraction  of  qualities 
that  are  supposed  to  belong  to  the  "  king  of 
beasts." 

On  the  5th  of  January  the  temperature,  till  now 
excessively  hot,  changed  suddenly,  and  became 
cold  to  such  a  degree  as  to  make  thick  woollen 
clothing  and  overcoats  an  absolute  necessity. 
A  general  idea  of  the  climate  from  this  point 
southward  may  be  given,  in  the  statement  that 
during  the  day  the  heat  is  excessive,  and  the 
nights  cool,  even  cold,  if  in  the  rainy  season. 
The  shores  of  the  river  as  we  proceed,  and  emerge 
from  its  worst  marshy  part,  present  at  this  season 
(dry)  sufficient  firmness  to  permit  their  habitation 
by  great  numbers  of  negroes,  who  come  down 
from  the  interior  to  spear  fish  and  crocodiles, 
which,  together  with  the  eggs,  form  the  sole  food 
of  these  people  in  this  interval.  The  rainy 
season,  however,  repels  them  from  the  shore,  and 
they  seek  higher  lands,  farther  removed ;  this 
migration  is  annual. 

On  the  9th  of  January  we  arrived  at  the  station. 


THE    "  SCHIR  "    TEIBE.  235 

'*  Bor,"  a  detachment  being  placed  there  for  the 
same  purpose  as  those  already  mentioned.  The 
Mudir  Wad-el-Nile  caused  the  tribe  "  Montas," 
speaking  the  Dinka  language,  to  make  a  "  Ka- 
malalah "  dance  in  my  honour.  Until  this 
moment  I  thought  that  I  had  seen  every  curious 
fantasiah  of  the  people  along  the  Bahr-el-Abiad ; 
but  their  contortions  of  figure  and  eccentric 
evolutions  certainly  claimed  precedence  over  all, 
as  it  excited  the  greatest  mirth  to  witness  their 
ridiculous,  and — truth  to  tell — their  immodest 
postures. 

On  the  10th  we  pass  the  "  Schir"  tribe,  whose 
numerous  villages  and  great  herds  of  cattle  in  the 
distance  assure  us  for  the  first  time  that  there  is 
"  land  ahead,"  for  we  are  emerging  from'  the 
dreary  wilderness,  through  which  we  have  made 
our  way,  into  "  a  land  flowing  with  milk  and 
honey,"  by  comparison.  The  Schir  speak  the 
Bari  language,  and  with  the  exception  of  some 
details  in  customs  are  practically  an  identical 
tribe.  Secession  is  a  favourite  ideal  of  all 
Africans,  whilst  "  a  union,  a  constitution,  and  an 
enforcement  of  the  laws,"  is  perhaps  justly  feared, 
when  it  might  as  elsewhere,  in  more  enlightened 
states,  be  prostituted  to  the  interests  of  a  faction, 
or  in  a  one-man  power — nepotism.  This  would 
surely  be  the  result  among  the  negroes ;  for  I 
could  not  fail  to  remark  that,  in  proportion  as  the 
Sheik  was  weak,  his   subjects  were  most  happy, 


236  CENTRAL   AFRICA. 

and  vice  versa ;  for  I  have  had  occasion  to  say 
before,  in  that  connexion,  that  "  might  makes 
right,"  among  all  these  negro  tribes.  In  dis- 
unity then  there  is  happiness,  if  not  strength. 

The  river  at  this  season  is  difficult  of  naviga- 
tion, and  is  full  of  shoals,  among  which  the 
steamer  is  forced  to  proceed  cautiously,  often- 
times grounding,  when  the  crew,  aided  by  the 
friendly  negroes,  plunge  into  the  water  to  pusb 
lier  through  at  imminent  risk  of  life  from  the 
fatal  jaws  of  the  crocodile  or  the  hippopotami, 
which,  in  great  numbers  are  only  kept  away  by 
noise  and  the  constant  rifle  firing. 

Here,  as  in  several  places  along  the  river, 
troops  of  elephants  and  buffaloes  approach  the 
bank — the  former  with  stately  mien  and  curious 
gaze  to  regard  the  steamer,  whilst  with  my  Reilly 
No.  8,  I  have  planted  an  explosive  shell  in  their 
bodies,  with  no  other  result,  except  in  one  single 
case,  than  to  send  the  herd  with  maddened 
trumpetting  crashing  through  the  jungle-grass 
that  scarcely  hides  their  fast  retreating  forms. 

On  the  night  of  the  10th  of  January  we  arrived 
at  Lado,  that  bad  now  grown  into  a  considerable 
post ;  in  fact  it  was  what  Gondokoro  had  been. 
The  umbrella-like  straw  roofs  of  the  huts  at  that 
post  had  been  brought  down  on  nuggers,  and 
Lado,  though  laid  out  but  with  little  regard  to  a 
military  encampment,  was  in  the  future  to  be  the 
head-quarters  of    the   Government  of  th.e  Equa- 


LADO.  237 

torial  Provinces,  fourteen  miles  north  of  Gondo- 
koro,  and  on  the  opposite  side  of  the  river.  The 
removal  had  been  actuated  by  the  fact  that 
Gondokoro  had  proved  a  cemetery  for  many  of  the 
expedition,  both  Europeans  and  soldiers.  The 
banks  are  twelve  to  fifteen  feet  above  the  level  of 
the  river ;  but  the  low  opposing  bank  and  marshy 
country  would  seem  scarcely  to  warrant  the  hope 
of  any  great  amelioration  in  point  of  health. 
But,  in  all  truth,  1500  miles  of  marsh  and  fetid 
air  to  the  north,  and  deadly  jungles,  morasses, 
and  lakes  of  decayed  vegetable  matter  to  the 
south,  form  a  deadly  circle  which  devotes  to  a 
certain  fate  the  white  man  that  no  artifice  can 
surmount.  Central  Africa  is  a  deadly  pestiferous 
country,  in  spite  of  the  "  trumbash  "  to  the 
contrary  by  travellers,  whose  very  record  of 
sufferings  long  detailed  should  be  sufficient  to 
contradict  effusions  as  a  bid  for  a  sympathy  that 
they  ostensibly  ask  for  a  "  Paradise  Lost "  and 
the  negro.  There  is  a  selfishness  in  all  these 
misrepresentations  that  is  only  too  manifest. 
Central  Africa  and  the  negro  are  a  popular  theme ; 
"to  keep  up  with  the  procession,"  then,  is  a  duty 
that  is  obligatory,  even  though  it  be  done  in  direct 
opposition  to  the  truth.  To  speak  of  Central 
Africa  as  it  is,  "  nothing  to  extenuate,  or  aught 
set  down  in  malice,"  is  the  object  of  this  book. 

The  Governor  General  was  anxiously  awaiting 
my  return.      Mr.  Hanzell,  the  Consul-General  of 


238  CENTRAL   AFRICA. 

Austria  and  of  France,  liad  arrived  at  Lado  in  order 
to  present  to  the  Governor  General,  M.  Marno,  an 
envoye  of  tlie  Geographical  Society  of  Vienna. 
The  latter  gentleman  remained  in  tlie  service  of 
the  expedition  but  a  very  short  time,  the  Governor 
General  having  no  need  of  his  services.  Col.  Gor- 
don being  temporarily  absent,  Marno  accompanied 
me  in  the  expedition  to  Makraka  Niam-Niam  upon 
his  most  urgent  prayer  to  me,  and  upon  the  con- 
dition especially  imposed  and  accepted  by  him  of  his 
being  in  no  official  capacity  whatever,  but  solely 
as  my  guest — a  responsibility  and  a  kindness  that 
M.  Marno  afterwards  recognized,  as  well  as  the 
Geographical  Society  of  Vienna,  through  M. 
Hochstetter,the  President,  who  not  alone  added  his 
appreciation  of  the  services  I  had  rendered  Marno 
personally;  but  in  correcting  an  error  that  he  (M. 
Hochstetter)  had  made  in  his  speech  before  the 
Geographical  Society  of  Paris.  In  reply  to  my  re- 
clamation he  took  occasion,  in  the  most  courteous 
terms,  to  disclaim  any  intention  of  wrong  to  me, 
and  to  invite  me  to  their  Society  at  Vienna.' 

*  Congrcs  des  Sciences  Geographiques  de  Paris.  M.  le  Dr. 
Ferdinand  Hochstetter,  President  de  la  Societe  I.  R.  de 
Geographic  de  Vienne,  adresse  un  document  d'oii  ressortent 
certaines  rectifications  demandees  par  M.  le  Colonel  Chaille 
Long  Bey,  au  sujet  de  la  maniere  dont  son  role,  et  celui  de  M. 
Marno  au  dernier  Congres  International  des  Sciences  Geo- 
graphiques avaient  ete  apprecie.  Cette  lettre  est  accorapagnee 
de  la  copie  d'une  lettre  adresse  par  la  Societe  I.  R.  de 
Geographic  de  Vienne  a  M.  Chaille  Long  Bey,  et  qui  douue 
toute  satisfaction  a  ses  reclamations. — Explorateur. 


ARRIVAL  OF  MESSRS.  WATSON,  CHIPPiffNDALE,  ETC.     239 

Two  Englisli  officers,  Messrs.  "Watson  and 
Chippendale,  had  arrived  during  my  absence. 
They  were  to  solve  the  question  of  the  Albert 
Nyanza,  and  were  preparing  to  enter  upon  their 
service ;  an  enterprise  that  apparently  entailed  but 
httle  hazard,  since  the  Lake  was  flanked  by  the 
stations  at  Fatiko  and  Foueira.  The  work  there- 
fore promised  speedy  success. 

Ernest  Linant,  who  had  arrived  during  my 
absence,  was  then  at  Gebel  Kegaf — fifteen  miles 
south  of  Gondokoro  —  from  which  point  he  was  to 
go  to  M'Tse,  accompanied  by  a  picked  set  of  men, 
the  famous  "  forty  thieves  "  of  Sir  Samuel  Baker. 

Loron,  the  Sheik  of  the  Bari  tribe,  and  whose 
place  is  at  Gondokoro,  visited  the  camp  almost 
daily,  and  he  and  his  wives  came  often  to  see  me. 
The  great  attraction  for  Loron,  was  several  bottles 
of  spirits  of  wine  that  I  had  taken  from  the  maga- 
zine. One  of  these,  Loron,  on  a  previous  visit  had 
drank  in  two  or  three  draughts  !  and  went  away 
only  "  half-seas  over."  His  wives  with  great 
bushy  caudal  appendages  as  an  excuse  for  cloth- 
ing, were  always  modest,  and  greatly  delighted 
with  any  present,  however  simple. 

The  Bari  are  a  tall,  well-made  tribe,  combining 
perhaps  more  treachery  and  cowardice  than  any 
other ;  but  having  a  decided  advantage,  by  reason 
of  good  and  productive  lands,  that  serve  them  as 
grazing  for  their  cattle,  or  for  the  '"  dourah  "  crop 
which  they  cultivate  sufficiently  to  keep  them  in 
passably  good  flesh. 


240  •  CENTRAL  AFRICA. 

The  men  go  perfectly  nude,  regarding  all  dress 
as  effeminate,  and  women  wear  only  the  bushy 
tails  before  referred  to.  All  hair  from  head  and 
body  is  removed,  cleanly  shaven,  and  the  whole 
skin  smeared  with  an  oxide  of  iron,  mixed  with 
grease.  A  similar  powder  is  procured  from  a 
tree,  that  here  grows  quite  large.  Every  Sheik 
may  have  under  his  authority  for  the  use  of  his 
people,  one  or  more  of  these  trees,  an  indis- 
pensable cosmetic  for  the  Bari.  Armed  with 
bow  and  arrows,  he  bears  a  striking  resem- 
blance to  the  American  Indian  of  the  Far  West, 
whilst  the  female  looks  like  gutta-percha  of  an 
improved  Goodyear's  patent.  They  call  each 
other  "  Giglio  "  (which  means  friend),  and  the 
language  is  not  unpleasant,  and  quite  eupho- 
nious. 

On  the  16th  of  January,  Wat-el-Mek,  with  600 
Abides  (having  with  him  Kellerman  and  Ibrahim), 
arrived  in  camp.  These  600  men  had  come  from 
M'Tse,  and  from  Rionga;  having  been  sent  by  the 
former  to  assure  himself  of  the  road  I  had  opened, 
and  upon  which  he  promised,  and  now  made  good 
that  promise,  to  establish  couriers,  and  later,  posts 
for  the  greater  security  of  the  transport  of  ivory. 
Troops  had  not  yet  been  sent  to  punish  the  de- 
feated, but  still  badly  disposed  Keba  Rega,  and 
the  latter  laid  in  ambush  and  killed  forty  of 
M'Tse's  men. 


CAMP  INVADED  BY  ELEPHANTS.       241 

Wat-el-Mek,  wlio  was  always  in  correspt)ndence 
with  Keba  Rega,  brought  with  him  a  music  box, 
and  a  uniform,  doubtless  thinking  them  a  great 
prize.  The  audacious  Keba  Rega  however  had 
preferred  the  request  that  "  the  music  box  might 
be  mended  and  returned  to  him."  The  camp  at 
Lado  is  frequently  invaded  by  troops  of  elephants, 
who,  mistaking  the  accustomed  path  to  the  river, 
walk  leisurely  into  camp,  to  find  out  their  error 
only  amid  a  shower  of  balls,  that  in  many  cases 
have  killed  them  on  the  spot.  Not  unfrequently 
they  had  been  killed  by  the  six-pounders  posted 
near  the  river  bank.  Certainly  a  unique  case  in  all 
accounts  of  the  hunting  of  such  highly  prized  game, 
and  yet  it  may  not  appear  improbable  when  it  is 
understood  that  the  Bari  very  seldom  attacks 
him  with  a  lance.  The  elephant,  emboldened  by 
the  comparative  peace  with  the  natives,  has  not 
the  shyness  that  he  has  among  those  who,  if  they 
do  not  attack  openly  with  lance,  do  so  covertly, 
or  by  means  of  holes  or  traps,  that  soon  causes 
the  sagacious  beast  to  forsake  his  accustomed 
haunts.  The  elephant  when  wounded  in  the  leg 
(considered  by  the  natives  his  most  vulnerable 
part),  will  stop,  stamp  and  crush  with  rage  the 
maimed  member  until  no  longer  able  to  flee.  He 
is  thus  easily  captured. 

Great  numbers  of  lions,  leopards,  and  wild 
cats     make    night    hideous    around    the     straw 


242  CENTRAL   AFRICA. 

palisade'  that  encircles  tlie  camp,  erected  with 
a  view  to  protection  against  their  audacious 
attacks. 

My  hut  was  situated  on  the  high  bluff  that  over- 
hangs the  river,  and  when  night  came,  my  rifle  in 
hand  I  beguiled  the  tedious  hours,  surrounded  by 
my  faithful  friends  Said  and  Abd-el-Rahman,  and 
the  officers  of  the  post,  in  shooting  at  hippopotami, 
that  ramped  and  roared  in  the  deep  black  river  at 
my  feet.  Their  guttural  "Ugh  !  ugh  !"  ending  in 
long  roars  of  defiance  as  the  ball  exploded  vainly 
in  their  tough  hides,  made  it  exciting  sport ; 
but  unless  the  vital  spot  above  the  eye  is  reached, 
even  an  explosive  shell  is  powerless  to  kill  imme- 
diately. 

To-day  a  steamer  arrived  with  mails,  bring- 
ing the  order  cited  below,  which  was  duly  com- 
municated to  me  by  the  Governor  General. 

"  Minist^re  de  la  Guerre, 
"  Bureau  du  chef  d'etat  major,  Caire, 

"Le  16  Novembre,  1874. 

"M  le  Lieut.-Colonel  Long  de  I'etat  Major-General,  en 
expedition  pres  du  lac  Albert  a  ete  attaque  par  environ  400 
hommes  armes  ennemis  du  Khedive ;  seul  avec  deux  soldats, 
il  a  repousse  les  attaques  reiteres  de  cette  troupe  et  il  I'a  mise 
en  fuite  apres  lui  avoir  tue  quatre-vingt-deux  hommes.  Pour 
ce  fait  d'armes  eclatant  et  pour  s'etre  acquitte  heureusement 
malgre  de  grande  difficultes  de  la  mission  qui  lui  etait  confiee 
an  pays  d"  gunda,  Son  Altesse  le  Khedive  a  bien  voulu 
uoramer  ?..  le  Lieut.-Colonel  Lcng  au  grade  de  Colonel  dans 


EECEIVE   PKOMOTION    FROM    THE    KHEDIVE.       243 

le  corps  d'etat  major.     Par  ordre  de  S.  A.  le  Prince  Ministre 
de  la  Guerre. 

"Le  chef  de  I'etat  Major-General, 
"(Signe)  Stone." 

Wat-el-Mek  told  me  that  Suleiman,  in  reply  to 
my  letter  addressed  from  Foueira  to  King  Keba 
Rega,  had  withdrawn  from  there,  and  had  actually 
accompanied  him  as  far  on  the  route  as  Fatiko, 
where  he  proposed  remaining  until  further  orders. 
He  said  that  Suleiman  had  become  convinced 
that  some  serious  affair  had  taken  place,  since 
Keba  Rega  very  excitedly  had  shown  him  a 
great  number  of  balls,  that  he  (Suleiman)  knew 
belonged  to  my  elephant  gun,  that  had  been 
picked  out  of  the'  bodies  of  his  slain,  whom 
Keba  Rega  placed  at  a  ridiculously  large 
number,  saying  that  the  man  who  had  done 
all  that  was  "  Belignan  Kebire  "  (big  mountain), 
a  soubriquet  given  me  by  the  Riongi,  on  my 
return  to  Foueira,  under  circumstances  already 
related. 

The  17th  was  "  Courban  Bairam,"  the  second 
great  annual  fete-day  in  all  Egypt.  It  was 
celebrated  here  by  a  military  review  and 
parade,  whilst  I  received  the  officers  in  the 
general  divan  as  the  representative  of  the 
Governor  General. 

On  the  26th,  the  Governor  General  left  for  the 
Saubat    junction    on   a   tour    of  inspection,    the 


244  CENTRAL   AFRICA. 

expeditionary  corps  having   already  gone   soutli- 
ward. 

I  now  turned  my  attention  to  preparations  for 
the  expedition  to  the  Makraka  Niam-Mam  country, 
the  object  of  which  was  to  open  a  road  through 
the  hostile  Yanbari  tribe  that  until  now  had  barred 
the  passage  to  the  Makraka  Niam-Niam  country, 
westward  from  the  Nile.  The  occupation  of  which 
was  not  only  to  exploit  its  great  ivory  interests, 
but  at  the  same  time  to  affirm  the  authority  of  the 
Government  in  its  mission  of  civilization.  There 
was  another  consideration ;  the  health  of  the 
Arab  soldiers  was  precarious  in  the  extreme.  I 
had  chosen  450  stalwart  men,  when  at  Khartoum, 
from  a  battalion  of  800  meti.  They  arrived  in 
good  health,  but  they  fell  ill  in  great  numbers  ;  it 
was  unquestionable,  they  could  not  stand  the 
climate.  Extra  rations  of  tea  and  sugar  and  other 
luxuries  were  issued  to  them  in  vain.  The  Niam- 
Niam  country  was  reputed  healthy,  and  the  only 
Eldorado  of  health  in  all  Central  Africa ;  it  was 
therefore  determined  to  occupy  that  country, 
with  the  double  purpose  of  exploitation,  and  the 
re-establishment  of  the  health  of  the  soldiers. 
Besides  this,  I  hoped  that  this  expedition,  if  my 
health  should  be  equal  to  the  occasion,  might 
serve  me  as  a  reconnaissance  in  an  expedition  I 
might  undertake  later,  to  open  a  road  through  the 
Monbutto  country,  unfolding  the  mysteries  of  the 
Akkas  or  Ticki-Ticki,  and  other  strange  people. 


PEEPAEATIONS.  245 

whose  existence  vaguely  signalled  by  both  ancient 
and  modern  travellers,  was  still  left,  in  a  Gulhve- 
rian  sense,  in  the  realm  of  fiction  ;  finally,  I  hoped 
to  reach  through  these  mysterious  regions — the 

Atlantic ! 

S 


CHAPTER  XVm. 

Departure  from  Lado — Halt  at  Laguno — Entertained  by  the, 
Sheik  Morbi,  who  accompanies  us — The  Makraka  Niam- 
Niam  pictured  to  the  troops  as  a  Mohammedan  Paradise 
— Excessive  heat — Simmim  butter — "  Striking  oil  " — 
Gebel  Meri— Gebel  Miah — The  dead  rider— The  Yan- 
bari — Fortified  Zeribas — Poisoned  weapons — Euphorbes 
Arborescentes — Give  presents  to  the  Sheik  of  the  Yan- 
bari — One  of  my  sokliers  wounded — Tlie  arrow  being 
poisoned  he  dies — The  "  Hor  Yeh  " — Camp  of  Latroche 
— Settlement  of  my  force  in  four  detachments — Collection 
of  300  to  400  young  girls — Several  of  them  are  married 
to  the  force — Inhabitants  slightly  AnthropopJiagic — The 
Niam-Niam  demand  revenge  on  the  Yanbari — Start  for 
Makraka  Assariah. 

All  preparations  having  been  concluded  tlie  night 
previous,  I  started  from  Lado  on  the  morning  of 
the  31st  at  an  early  hour,  in  command  of  a  detach- 
ment of  Arabs,  beside  twenty  Soudanieh  soldiers 
attached  to  me  as  my  personal  escort.  A  few  days 
before  1  despatched  a  similar  troop,  destined  for 
this  service,  with  orders  to  proceed  slowly  and 
cautiously,  with  the  object  of  overtaking  them  and 
forming  junction  ere  they  entered  the  hostile  Yan- 
bari country,  through  which  we  must  pass.  I  was 
accompanied  by  my  two  soldiers,  Said  and  Abd- 
el-Rahman,  and,  mounted  upon  a  white  horse  which 


HALT   AT    LAG  UNO.  247 

was  to  replace  Ugunda,  wlio  had  died  at  E,egaf 
during  my  absence,  and  almost  immediately  after 
my  departure  for  Khartoum.  M.  Marno  accom- 
panied me  as  my  guest.  One  hundred  and  fifty 
Abides  of  the  Bari  had  been  engaged  at  the  price 
of  a  cow  each  to  carry  the  effects  of  soldiers, 
tents,  &c.  A  march  of  thirteen  miles  south,  in 
close  proximity  to  the  river,  brought  us  to  a  point 
called  "  Laguno,"  on  the  banks  of  a  river  whose 
sandy  bed,  now  dry,  is  called  Hor-el- Ramie  (Stream 
of  sand),  but  which  in  the  rainy  season  becomes  a 
deep  and  surging  torrent,  as  it  receives  the  waters 
from  surrounding  elevations  that  make  their  way 
from  Gebel,  Lado,  Longy,  and  Regaf.  Our 
camping-ground  was  almost  within  sight  of  the  de- 
serted post  at  GondokorOjOn  the  right  bank  of  the 
river.  Here  we  bivouacked  for  the  night,  and 
were  hospitably  entertained  by  the  Sheik  Morbi, 
who  insisted  upon  accompanying  me  on  the  mor- 
row. The  season  was  propitious,  and  I  hoped 
to  return  ere  the  rains  that  would  commence 
in  April.  It  was  excessively  hot,  but  I  had  be- 
come so  acciistomed  to  heat,  that  I  scarcely 
regarded  it.  Rain  brought  misery,  suffering,  and 
fever,  and  was  therefore  greatly  dreaded,  not  alone 
by  soldiers,  but  by  the  "  Abides." 

On  the  1st  of  February,  at  six  o'clock  in  the 
mornmg,  we  broke  camp,  leaving  the  river  and 
turning  towards  the  Land  of  Promise  —  the 
Eldorado  of  my  Arab  soldiers,  whose  imagination 
had  been  greatly  excited  by  reports  of  the  negroes. 


248  CENTRAL   AFRICA. 

wlio  pictured  the  Makraka  Niam-Niam  women  as 
"  houris  "  in  beauty,  and  the  land  watered  by 
silver  streams  that  ran  through  groves  of  golden 
fruit  and  whispering  myrtles — a  Mohammedan's 
Paradise.  It  were  well  that  I  had  this  aid  to 
the  difficult  march,  for  the  Arab  soldier  was  weak 
and  enfeebled,  and  without  this  incentive  could 
scarcely  have  endured  the  fatigue  and  heat,  though 
the  march  was  carefully  made  within  the  limit  of 
their  strength.  These  apparent  illusions  were  not 
all  deceptive,  for  the  females  came  in  great  num- 
bers to  fete  our  arrival,  and  streams  of  "  laughing 
waters  "  that  ran  through  banana  groves,  refreshed 
our  weary  limbs,  and  furnished  us  bananas  for 
nourishment. 

The  road  for  the  first  and  second  day's  march 
ran  through  a  beautiful  rolling  park-like  country, 
dotted  here  and  there  by  great  trees,  sugar-loaf  in 
shape,  whose  service  "  Morbi "  told  me  was  that  a 
red  powder  was  made  from  the  bark,  resembling 
the  oxide  of  iron,  both  of  which  mixed  with  grease, 
was  the  special  insignia  of  the  "  Bari,"  who  thus 
smeared  their  depilated  bodies,  and  that  these 
trees  belonged  only  to  the  Sheik,  who  alone  was 
charged  with  the  distribution  of  the  esteemed 
unguent.  Beneath  the  grateful  shade  of  these 
trees  were  neat  little  villages  of  straw-huts  of  cir- 
cular shape,  entrance  to  which  was  obtained  only 
by  creeping  upon  the  hands  and  knees  through  the 
door,  which  was  scarcely  large  enough  to  admit  the 


EXCESSIVE    HEAT.  249 

body.  Well  filled  corn-bins,  raised  high  upon  stakes 
of  burnt  wood,  in  order  to  protect  from  rats  or  the 
still  more  fatal  ravages  of  the  white  ant,  attested 
the  inclination  to  industry,  and  their  superiority 
to  the  negroes  along  the  Bahr-el-Abiad  to  the 
north. 

On  the  2nd  of  February,  the  country  changed 
to  wild  jungles,  whilst  the  earth  was  cracked  and 
parched,  and  great  fissures  made  the  road  not 
only  difficult  but  dangerous.  The  heat  was  ex- 
cessive, and  no  water  was  to  be  found  except  in 
the  mud  holes  that  had  been  dug  by  elephant  and 
buffalo,  and  which  were  nothing  less  than  cess- 
pools or  receptacles  of  the  deposit  of  the  beasts. 
The  revolting  taste  and  odour,  however,  could  not 
deter  us  from  drinking  to  quench  thirst  or  to  make 
our  bread. 

Frequent  halts  were  indispensable  to  repose,  not 
alone  for  the  soldiers,  but  the  Bari  porters.  It 
was  just  as  I  had  given  the  order  to  halt  the 
fatigued  column,  that  I  noticed  not  a  few  porters 
as  well  as  soldiers,  were  struggling  under  the 
weight  of  huge  demi-johns,  that  upon  inspection 
proved  to  be  "  Simmim  "  (butter).  This  rancid, 
nauseous  fluid  is  a  sine  qua  non  of  the  Arab  cuisine, 
whilst  it  is  a  highly  prized  pommade  for  the  co- 
quettish naked  Soudan  girl  who  oils  her  head  and 
body,  not  alone  as  embellishment  of  the  former, 
but  to  protect  against  the  rays  of  the  sun  that 
causes  the  skin  to  parch  and  crack.     Great  quan- 


250  CENTRAL   AFEIOA. 

titles  of  this  butter  had  been  taken  against  my 
positive  orders,  adding  greatly  to  the  difficulties 
of  the  march,  whilst  I  regarded  it  as  extremely 
deleterious  to  their  health.  Reserving  only  suffi- 
cient for  the  route,  I  caused  the  demi-johns  to  be 
placed  in  a  row,  and  broke  them  with  my  sword. 
The  oily  matter  covered  the  ground,  and  the  scene 
that  followed  as  the  Bari  Abide  with  yells  and 
screams  of  delight  endeavoured  to  "  sop  "  it  up, 
was  a  phase  of  "  striking  oil "  that  could  never 
have  been  equalled  in  "  Oil  City  "  in  the  days  of 
the  petroleum  fever  of  the  past. 

Resuming  the  march,  we  arrived  at  Hor  Bey,  a 
mountain  stream  in  the  rainy  season,  but  now 
perfectly  dry.  For  a  moment  I  had  grave  fears 
that  water  would  fail  us,  but  the  negroes  soon  dug 
with  their  hands  down  into  the  sandy  bed,  and 
procured  excellent  water.  We  bivouacked  there 
for  the  nigfht. 

On  the  3rd  of  February  we  resumed  march  at 
six  a.m.,  arriving  at  "  Gebel  Meri "  at  half-past 
one  p.m.  A  Sheik  came  to  me  and  represented 
that  his  brother  was  chief  Sheik  of  the  country, 
and  that  he  desired  to  have  his  authority  recog- 
nized as  there  were  other  claimants.  I  accordingly 
caused  him  to  be  arrayed  in  a  red  flannel  shirt 
and  fez,  badge  of  office  adopted  by  the  officers  at 
Gondokoro,  in  nominating  to  positions  of  great 
trust  those  that  sought  the  protection  of  "  Meri" — 
the  Government.     The  candidate  was  followed  by 


THE    DEAD    EIDER.  251 

a  numerous  retinue  and  certainly  proved  by  this 
manifestation  that  lie  had  a  party.  I  gave  him  a 
paper  in  Arabic  declaring  him  Sheik-el-Meri,  at 
which  he  seemed  very  proud,  as  it  assured  him  pro- 
tection from  tribes  who  would  now  fear  to  attack 
him  unless  prepared  to  brave  "  Ali  Bey"  at  Gondo- 
koro.  Ali  Bey  was  the  usual  designation  of  any 
white  officer  in  command,  and  among  the  Barithe 
Governor  General  bore  this  title  as  well  as  myself. 
On  the  5th  of  February,  through  a  jungle  and 
difficult  road,  we  arrived  near  the  Gebel  Miah, 
where,  as  before,  we  dug  for  water  in  the  dry 
bed  of  a  stream,  now  our  only  resource.  Whilst 
awaiting  the  arrival  of  the  rear-guard,  a  soldier, 
apparently  asleep,  his  body  bent  upon  the  neck 
of  the  donkey  on  which  he  was  mounted,  came 
up  to  where  I  had  thrown  myself  upon  the  ground. 
Receiving  no  reply  to  my  hasty  exclamation  as 
the  donkey  ran  over  me,  I  seized  the  bridle 
to  remonstrate  with  the  rider.  I  found  him 
passed  from  my  orders  to  a  higher  commander — 
dead.  Every  effort  was  made  to  restore  life,  and 
I  made  several  incisions  in  the  skin,  but  in  vain. 
Corporal  Ali  Galal  had  been  taken  ill  but  a  few 
moments  before,  and,  unable  to  proceed,  had  been 
placed  upon  the  donkey.  He  was  buried  at  sun- 
down with  military  honours  in  a  picturesque  spot, 
near  the  base  of  a  chain  of  mountains,  that,  hence 
running  southward,  mark  once  more  a  lovely 
country.     Under  cover  of  the  quick  succeeding 


252  CENTRAL    AFEICA. 

night,  our  cattle  to  the  number  of  twelve,  frightened 
at  the  rattle  of  musketry  discharged  over  the  dead, 
broke  from  the  guards,  and  were  lost  in  the  jungle. 
Not  far  from  this  spot  my  dog  *'  Goorah-Goorah," 
frightened  at  my  attempts  to  chastise  her  for  at- 
tempting to  bite  a  donkey,  fled  to  the  jungle,  return- 
ing to  the  station  at  Lado  as  I  afterwards  learned, 
after  an  absence  of  eight  days,  during  which  time 
she  had  doubtless  been  chased  by  leopards  and  lions 
that  abound  here  in  great  numbers.  Several  other 
accidents  caused  the  day  to  be  frequently  referred 
to  as  a  long  chapter  of  accidents,  and  in  my  journal 
I  named  it  Black  Friday. 

On  the  6th  I  lost  another  soldier,  who  died  of 
fever.     He  was  buried  with  mihtary  honours. 

On  the  7th  we  had  reached  the  confines  of  the 
Yanbari  country ;  a  tribe  that  had  almost  entire 
possession  for  many  miles  of  country  that  once 
belonged  to  more  peaceful  tribes,  that  had  either 
been  massacred  or  driven  from  the  country. 
Warlike  and  cruel,  they  had  thus  effectually 
barred  the  passage  from  the  Nile  westward, 
and  though  I  did  not  wish  to  attack  them  I 
felt  confident  that  I  should  be  attacked.  I 
therefore  caused  the  column  to  march  in  double 
file,  protected  by  a  strong  rear-guard,  to  whom 
strict  injunctions  were  given  that  straggling  was 
on  no  account  to  be  permitted.  The  country  had 
now  become  savage  in  the  extreme,  penned  in  by 
a  chain  of  abrupt  mountains  in  an  amphitheatral 


FORTiriED   ZERIBAS.  253 

form,  througli  wMcli  passed  the  rocky  road,  ren- 
dered still  more  difficult  by  the  cane-like  grass 
that  seemed  to  bar  the  passage  entirely.  I  threw 
forward  skirmishers,  however,  to  clear  the  jungle 
that  afforded  a  splendid  point  of  attack  for  the 
natives,  whose  "  Zeribas,"  half  hidden  to  view, 
were  to  be  seen  in  great  numbers.  These 
"  Zeribas,"  of  rude  construction  of  grass,  were 
surrounded  by  a  palisade  of  cactus  of  young 
growth  that  is  constantly  renewed,  and  forms 
an  impenetrable  barrier  of  defence,  from  its 
thorn,  that  cuts  like  a  knife  the  nude  besieger. 
The  milky  fluid  that  exudes  therefrom  forms  a 
deadly  poison,  with  which  the  arrows  and  lance 
of  the  Yanbari  are  dipped  or  coated  with  the 
paste  that  is  formed  by  successive  infusions. 
The  wound  is  almost  certainly  fatal,  and  no 
antidote  is  known  to  save  the  victim.  This  is 
the  only  tribe  in  Central  Africa  who  thus  em- 
poison their  arms. 

This  cactus-like  tree  is  simply  a  development 
of  the  cactus  already  alluded  to.  It  grows  to  a 
height  of  at  least  forty  feet,  and  the  diameter  of 
its  trunk  about  three  feet.  The  trunk,  as  well  as 
the  branches  near  it,  hardens  with  age,  and  has 
the  appearance  of  cork,  whilst  the  upper  branches 
only  are  parenchymous  and  covered  with  thorns. 
The  negro  avoids  its  shade  as  baneful,  and  regards 
sleep  beneath  it  as  fatal  as  the  "Upas  tree."  The 
fig-tree  "  Gimmais,"  common  in  Egypt,  is  also  to 


254 


CENTRAL    AFRICA. 


be  seen  here,  though  the, fruit  is  imperfect.  The 
dourah  raised  here  is  a  small  bushy  grain  resem- 
bling the  broom  corn  of  the  Southern  States  of 
America.  This  is  the  sole  product  and  food  of 
the  Yanbari,  except  the  uncertain  chase  of  the 
elephant.  They  have  large  herds  of  cattle,  but 
as  among  other  tribes  the  cow  is  the  household 
Penates,    and    is    certainly    regarded  with    that 


EtrPHOEBES   AEBOBESCKNTES,   OP   THE   TANBARI   COtTNTltT. 

mysterious  reverence  already  noted  as  common 
to  tribes  along  tlie  Bahr-el-Abiad,  and  is  never 
made  an  article  of  food. 

On  the  night  of  the  7th  we  arrived  in  a  more 
open  country,  and  bivouacked  under  an  immense 
tree.  Until  now  we  had  been  unable  to  get  a 
sight  of  the  Yanbari,  who  invariably  fled  at  our 


A   STRAGGLER   WOUNDED.  255 

approacli.  At  sundown,  however,  we  observed 
great  numbers  collecting  on  our  left.  I  sent  for 
Morbi,  my  Bari  guide  and  dragoman,  that  he 
might  go  and  make  overtures  to  the  Sheik,  and 
assure  him  of  our  peaceful  intentions.  After  a 
long  parley  he  succeeded  in  bringing  him  back. 
I  gave  him  several  presents,  at  which  he  seemed 
greatly  dehghted.  A  sudden  quick  movement  on 
my  part  as  I  arose  to  light  my  pipe  caused 
"  Zmlingo  "  to  bolt  in  flight,  bounding  over  the 
cases  that  lay  around  the  door  of  my  tent,  with 
the  agility  of  a  deer.  These  people  speak  the* 
Bari  language,  and  differ  from  them  only  in  that 
they  do  not  shave  their  heads  or  pommade  their 
bodies.  They  are  very  black  in  tint.  Armed 
with  bow  and  arrows  that  are  poisoned  as  already 
stated.  They  carry  as  well  small  wooden  arrows, 
having  four  prongs,  with  which  they  shoot  birds. 
So  great  is  their  dexterity  that  the  bird  finds 
itself  embraced  inextricably  by  these  points,  and 
thus  falls  helplessly  to  the  ground. 

The  8th  we  resumed  the  march  at  an  early 
hour.  The  rear-guard,  notwithstanding  my  re- 
peated instructions,  permitted  one  of  my  Souda- 
nieh  soldiers,  Ismaine  Dasha,  to  stray  from  the 
column,  a  few  moments  ere  i  ordered  a  halt.  At 
this  moment  I  heard  the  report  of  a  gun  in  the 
rear.  Quickly  remounting,  I  took  my  Soudaniehs 
with  me,  and  retraced  the  road  at  a  double  quick. 
I  found  this  soldier  bathed  in  blood  that  gushed 


256  CENTRAL   AFHIOA. 

from  several  fearful  gaping  wounds  made  by 
lance  and  by  arrows.  A  cry  of  rage  went  up  from 
my  men  as  we  started  in  pursuit  of  tlie  retreating 
negroes  tliat  could  be  plainly  seen.  We  sent  after 
them  a  volley  as  tbey  disappeared  in  tlie  knotted 
jungle.  The  pursuit  was  useless.  Returning  to 
the  wounded  man  I  applied  perchloride  of  iron  and 
compresses  to  his  wounds,  and  so  far  staunched 
the  blood  as  to  hope  for  his  recovery.  He  died, 
however,  four  days  afterward,  having  been  carried 
on  an  angareb  bed  to  the  station  that  we  reached 
on  the  10th,  where  I  proposed  to  halt  for  several 
days. 

The  column  that  had  been  sent  on  in  advance 
had  doubtless  pushed  on  by  reason  of  scarcity  of 
water,  and  having  followed  faithfully  my  instruc- 
tions, had  doubtless  arrived  ere  this  at  the  river 
"Yeh."  The  Yanbari  hung  around  our  camp  at 
night  in  great  numbers,  and  shot  their  arrows  at 
us  at  random.  My  tent  was  perforated  with 
holes,  and  their  deadly  arrows  were  found  sticking 
in  the  walls  in  the  morning.  A  double  cordon  of 
sentinels  and  occasional  volleys  fired  into  the 
thick  jungle  during  the  night  caused  them  to 
desist  from  any  serious  attack. 

The  cowardly  attack  upon  the  soldier  Ismaine 
Dasha  had  greatly  enraged. his  Soudanieh  com- 
rades, the  fellowship  of  arms  being  always  a  very 
strong  tie  of  affection  among  these  men.  They 
therefore  begg-ed  me  to  lead  them  to  avenge  his 


THE    "  HOE-YEH."  257 

probable  death,  for  they  claimed  that,  the  arrows 
being  poisoned,  he  could  not  live.  This  proved 
unfortunately  too  true,  for  he  died  on  the  12th, 
evidently  from  poison  with  which  the  wound  had 
been  inoculated.  I  promised  that  on  my  return 
I  would  punish  them  severely. 

On  the  10th  at  mid- day  we  arrived  on  the  bank 
of  the  "  Hor  Yeh,"  near  the  friendly  Zeribah  of 
Sheik  Latroche.  The  spot  is  a  most  romantic 
one,  and  seems  to  realize  the  picture  drawn  by 
those  who  had  told  us  of  the  land  on  whose 
borders  we  had  now  arrived  after  eleven  days  of 
painful  marches.  A  shout  of  enthusiasm  burst 
from  my  wearied  column  as  we  came  in  sight  of 
a  broad  clear  sparkling  stream  of  water,  that 
with  noisy  murmur  dashed  in  foam  over  its  rocky 
bed.  Here  was  indeed  the  only  approach  I  had 
seen  to  the  "  Minnehaha — laughing  waters,"  as 
sung  by  Hiawatha.  Whilst  awaiting  the  arrival 
of  the  rear,  I  plunged  into  its  limpid  waters  for  a 
bath. 

In  response  to  my  bugle-call,  the  detachment 
that  had  already  arrived  and  quartered  with 
Latroche,  arrived  with  their  officers  and  Latroche 
to  greet  me.  The  officers  had  lost  quite  a 
number  of  the  men  on  the  road  from  fever,  but 
their  accounts  of  the  co.untry  greatly  interested 
me. 

Latroche  was  one  of  those  veteran  ivory -hunters 
that  years  before  had  reached  this  country  at  the 


258  CENTEAL   AFRICA. 

head  of  a  band  of  Dongolowee.  He  liad  success- 
fully exploited  ivory  among  the  Makraka  Niam- 
Niam,  had  made  many  successful  expeditions  far 
into  the  interior,  and  when  ivory  had  been  declared 
a  government  monopoly,  he  had  entered  the 
government  service.  His  relationship  with  these 
people  was  of  tlie  most  amicable  character. 
They  needed  only  the  military  force  that  I  pro- 
posed to  leave  them  as  a  permanent  occupation. 

The  river  Yeh  runs  north,  as  far  as  Chambe, 
and  there  falls  into  the  Bahr-el-Abiad.  It  is  navi- 
gable for  large  boats  and  nuggers  only  during  the 
rainy  season.  The  station  of  Latroche  is  only 
fifteen  minutes  distant,  situated  on  a  little  stream 
called  "  Torah,"  that  joins  at  this  point  the  river 
"Yeh." 

This  country  is  bounded  north  by  Eliab;  north 
and  west  by  Darfour  and  Dor  Bongo  and  Mon- 
butto  ;  south  by  Ligo  and  countries  lying  west  of 
Lake  Albert;  east  by  Kaliko,  Kakoua  and  the  Bahr- 
el-Abiad.  Rolling  and  cut  bere  and  there  by  chains 
of  mountains,  the  soil  is  highly  impregnated  with 
iron,  to  such  a  degree,  that  in  many  places  the 
water  was  scarcely  drinkable.  I  encouraged  my 
soldiers,  however,  to  use  it  freely  in  explaining  its 
qualities,  and  soon  had  the  satisfaction  of  seeing 
a  very  appreciable  amelioration  of  their  health,  as 
well  as  my  own;  though,  fevers  were  still  con- 
sidered, from  their  frequency,  a  part  of  our  African 
menu  of  life. 


COLLECTION    OF   YOUNG    GIRLS.  259 

Profiting  by  tlie  experience  of  Latroclie,  I  dis- 
posed of  my  two  detacliments  in  four  separate 
commands,  each  under  a  reliable  officer,  with 
instructions  to  encourage  friendly  relations  with 
the  natives,  and  in  all  respects  to  endeavour  to 
ameliorate  their  condition. 

The  camp  of  Latroche  was  situated  on  a  hill, 
amid  a  banana  grove  overlooking  the  stream 
"  Torah."  Within  its  grass  palisade  I  soon 
learned  that  there  existed  an  object  of  attraction 
for  both  officers  and  soldiers.  This  I  found  to  be 
a  collection  of  from  300  to  400  young  girls  that 
from  time  to  time  had  been  presented  to  Latroche 
by  the  different  Sheiks  who  had  paid  him  visits, 
and  had  brought  them  as  presents.  They  com- 
prised almost  every  type  of  the  Niam-Niam 
people,  and  belonged  principally  to  the  Makraka, 
Mundo, Muro,  Kiyeh,  Abaker,Monbutto,  and  others, 
who,  though  speaking  totally  different  idioms, 
their  countries  lay  in  close  proximity.  A  limited 
vocabulary  thereof  is  given  in  the  Appendix. 

The  girls  could  not  be  considered  slaves,  since 
they  remained  by  their  own  free  will.  I  proposed 
to  Latroche,  however,  that  I  should  take  posses- 
sion of  them  as  refugees,  that  those  who  wished  to 
2*0  mio-ht  do  so,  and  those  who  wished  to  remain 
might  choose  an  officer  or  soldier  as  husband. 
The  proposition  was  accepted  on  the  part  of  the 
females,  and  I  caused  a  goodly  number  to 
be    distributed    to    both    officers    and    soldiers. 


260  CENTRAL   AFEICA. 

This  was  a  tappy  stroke  of  diplomacy,  for  it  soon 
had  the  effect  of  rendering  the  Arab  soldier 
happy,  who  at  first  looked  morose  and  gloomy 
when  he  learned  that  his  stay  in  the  country  was 
indefinite.  These  women  were  by  no  means  com- 
mon-place beauties;  copper-coloured,  they  were 
generally  short  in  stature.  They  had  very  grace- 
ful and  compact  forms,  well  developed.  Their 
coiffure  was  a  real  chef  d'oeuvre,  but  beside  their 
copper  ornaments  around  legs,  arms,  and  neck, 
they  wore  no  other  article  of  dress,  except  a 
garland  of  leaves  that  served  them  as  a  curtain 
for  modesty  in  intention,  if  not  in  fact ! 

All  of  these  tribes  were  robust  in  form,  tall 
and  warlike.  Their  anthropophagic  qualities  are 
entirely  due  to  a  want  of  meat.  They  have  no 
cattle ;  the  products  of  the  country  are  yams, 
sugar-cane,  and  dourah ;  whilst  the  banana,  that 
in  the  interior  is  the  principal  article  of  food,  is 
here  replaced  by  a  millet  of  a  very  superior 
quality,  and  resembles  the  grain  of  wheat.  The 
soil  is  highly  productive,  as  shown  in  the  luxuriant 
growth  of  water-melons  and  vegetables  in  the 
private  gardens  of  the  Sheiks. 

Having  completed  my  disposition  of  the  troops 
that  had  been  sent  immediately  to  their  several 
stations,  I  proposed  to  enlist  600  Abides,  to 
accompany  me  back  to  the  Bahr-el-Abiad,  as 
porters  of  600  ivory  tusks  that  the  Sheik  Latroche 
wished  me  to  take.     The  Niam-Niam,  who  had 


AEEIVAL   AT   MAKRAKA    ASSAEIAH.  261 

suffered  severely  from  the  incursions  of  the  Yan- 
bari,  begged  that  I  would  permit  them  to  fight 
them.  In  fact  they  made  this  a  condition  of  their 
return  with  me,  and  I  was  nothing  loth  to  accept 
their  offer,  for  the  death  of  Ismaine  Dasha  since 
here,  had  made  me  sympathize  with  his  comrades, 
who  now  looked  to  me  for  revenge.  It  was 
arranged  then  that  the  Niam-Mam  should  return 
with  us.  "  V^e  victis  !  "  for  these  people,  armed 
with  bouclier  and  huge  knife,  were  reputed  the 
most  courageous  and  the  most  warlike  of  all  the 
Africans  we  had  met — at  least  Said  and  Abd-el- 
Rahman  told  me  so. 

On  the  15th,  accompanied  by  my  Soudanieh 
escort,  and  in  company  with  Latroche,  I  started 
in  hght  marching  order  south-westward  to  another 
station  called  Makraka  Assariah.  After  a  march 
of  four  hours  we  arrived  at  that  station,  situated  in 
a  banana  grove  on  the  banks  of  the  "Hor  Torah." 
The  soil  here,  as  before  noted,  is  strongly  impreg- 
nated  with   iron,   and   the   country    rolling   and 

mountainous. 

T 


CHAPTER  XIX. 

Tlie  Sheik  of  Makraka— "  Ticki-Ticki,"  Akka  woman- 
Interesting  interview  with  her — Hear  of  a  race  westward 
of  Makraka  with  monstrous  ears — The  Sheik  Parafio — 
His  numerous  wives  and  chihh-en — Gebel  Lingeterre — 
,  Fadlallali— The  "Mittoo"  tribe— "  Goorah-Goorah,"  a 
present  from  Fadlallah — Taken  ill  at  Khartoum,  I  am 
compelled  to  leave  her — Anthropophagy,  the  result  of 
necessity — The  Niam-Niam  ant-eaters — Marriage — Night 
attack  by  a  Dongolowee — Return  to  Makraka  Assariah — 
"  Congo  "  dance — Elephant  Hunting — Achmet  Agha — 
Grand  dance — Music — Prepare  to  return — Enlistment  of 
Niam-Niam  men — Mundo  Niam-Niam  Boy — Abou  Lange, 

The  Slieik  of  tlie  Makraka  Assariah  post  was  an 
AfFghanistan,  tliat  in  some  way  had  cast  his  for- 
tune years  before  with  the  Dongolowee  faction. 
His  Zeriba,  under  the  order  of  Latroche,  was  a 
model  of  cleanliness,  and  his  immense  garden  of 
vegetables,  and  his  banana  groves,  an  evidence  of 
a  greater  industry  and  foresight  than  I  had  ever 
seen  in  Central  Africa.  Achmet  Agha  was  un- 
tiring in  his  efforts  to  supply  my  table  with 
chickens,  mutton,  and  delicious  bananas  and 
water-melons.  As  this  included  one  of  my  sta- 
tions, the  officers  and  men  already  arrived,  came 


"  TIOKI-TICKI,"    AKKA   WOMAN.  2C3 

to  express  their  thanks,  as  well  as  to  assure  me 
of  their  perfect  happiness  in  remaining.  It  seemed 
that  the  soldiers  had  unlimited  numbers  of  wives, 
and  "up  to  this  time  all  went  "  merry  as  a  marriage 
bell!"  and  none  had  as  yet  shown  a  disposition 
to  jealousy.  The  Sheik  Latroche  and  Achmet  had 
in  store  for  me  what  they  knew  was  a  much 
coveted  prize.  I  had  frequently  questioned  them 
in  relation  to  the  Ticki-Ticki,  or  "  Akka  "  tribes, 
to  the  south-west.  What  was  my  surprise  and 
delight  when  Achmet  Agha  announced  to  me  that 
he  could  give  me  a  full-grown  woman,  and  accord- 
ingly sent  at  once  for  her. 

Her  appearance  struck  me  with  wonder  and 
astonishment,  that  could  be  in  nowise  trans- 
lated by  the  infant  and  undeveloped  form  of 
the  Ticki-Ticki  that  I  had  already  seen  on  the 
Bahr-el-Abiad  returning  from  Chambe.  Ticki- 
Ticki  was  certainly  twenty-five  years  of  age. 
Scarcely  four  feet  high,  she  was  nearly  as  broad. 
Her  diminutive  hands  and  feet,  and  well-rounded 
limbs,  were  strangely  at  variance  with  the  huge 
breadth  of  beam,  haunches,  and  stomach;  the  eye 
large,  the  nose  flat,  and  the  tint  a  bright  copper- 
colour.  Gazing  at  me  with  downcast,  half-fearful 
look,  for  I  was  the  first  white  man  she  had  ever 
seen,  I  asked  her,  as  she  spoke  Arabic — from 
long  intercourse  with  the  Dongolowee,  by  whom 
she  had  been  brought  from  the  court  of  Munza, 
King  of  Monbutto — if  she  would  like  to  go  with  me, 


264 


CENTRAL   AFRICA. 


she  replied,  "  Yes,  but  I  fear  you  will  eat  me ! "  For 
several  days  she  refused  to  eat,  assigning  as  a  rea- 
son that  if  she  became  fatter  the  white  man  would 
undoubtedly  eat  her — a  proof  positive  that  among 


'  TICKI-TICKI,      AKKA  "WOMAN. 


her  people  the  fat  ones  were  considered  a  great 
gourmandise.  Ticki-Ticki  was  perfectly  devoid 
of  clothing,  with  the  exception  of  the  poignee  of 
leaves  that  passed  between  the  thighs,  projecting 


INTERVIEW    WITH    HEE.  265 

in  front  and  rear,  tliat  served  tlie  same  office  as 
the  primeval  fig-leaf — the  sole  attempt  at  covering 
of  the  females  here — if  I  except  the  ornaments  of 
brass,  copper,  and  iron,  that  encase  in  burnished 
coils  their  legs,  arms,  and  neck.  Presented  with  a 
piece  of  red  cloth  the  little  Lillipnt  soon  lost  her 
shyness,  babbled  away,  and  amused  me  greatly 
with  her  grimaces,  and  feats  with  the  diminutive 
lance  of  the  Akka,  four  of  which  had  been  given 
me  by  the  Dongolowee  who  had  brought  her  from 
the  court  of  the  Monbutto  king.  A  few  days 
after,  when  perfectly  assured  that  I  would  not  eat 
her,  she  told  me  that  she  had  been  sent  to  the 
court  of  "Munza,"  King  of  the  Monbutto,  as  a 
slave,  in  company  with  the  infant  already  referred 
to,  at  Chambe ;  that^they  were  separated,  and  that 
she  had  come  from  that  country  in  company  with 
a  daughter  of  Munza,  whose  name  was  "  Goorah- 
Goorah,"  who  was  now  at  one  of  the  stations. 
This  girl  was  afterwards  given  me,  and  returned 
with  me,  in  company  with  Ticki-Ticki,  to  whom  she 
was  greatly  attached.  It  will  be  understood  by  the 
reader  that  these  enrolments  of  male  or  female 
were  entirely  voluntary.  The  non-attachment  to 
home  or  place  may  be  explained  by  the  fact  that 
the  people  in  whose  hands  she  had  been  for  several 
years  were  nomads,  and  of  course  she  constantly 
changed  hands.  Ticki-Ticki  declared  that  she 
had  never  been  a  mother,  though  her  huge  breasts 
would  seem  to  prove  the  reverse.     She  told  me 


2G6  .     OENTEAL   AFRICA. 

that  "  dongo  "  was  the  King  of  the  Ticki-Ticki,  a 
very  numerous  tribe,  who  was  tributary  to  King 
Munza,  furnishing  him  with  slaves  and  ivory; 
that  as  a  rule  her  people  were  much  shorter  than 
she,  and  that  the  women  always  accompanied  the 
men,  whether  in  attacks  upon  neighbouring  tribes 
or  in  hunting  the  elephant.  Always  armed  with 
the  lance  in  question,  living  in  the  high 
jungle-grass,  they  secreted  themselves  in  great 
numbers  and  awaited  the  approach  of  a  troop 
of  elephants,  that  they  attacked  in  swarms,  and 
transfixed  them  with  their  lances.  She  represented 
her  people  as  having  much  greater  strength  than 
the  Dongolowee,  or  even  my  black  soldiers.  In 
reply  to  my  question  as  to  why  they  were  anthro- 
pophagic,  she  made  me  understand  that  it  was 
when  meat  was  scarce,  or  when  a  change  from  the 
regular  banana  regime  was  demanded  by  nature. 

Ticki-Ticki  was  passionately  fond  of  smoking, 
not  in  the  sense  of  the  exhilarating  effect  of  the 
weed  as  known  to  us,  but  after  the  manner  com- 
mon to  all  these  tribes.  A  huge  bowl  is  filled 
with  tobacco  and  clay,  sometimes  of  a  question- 
able mixture ;  the  fumes  are  inhaled  until  the 
smoker  falls  stupefied,  or  deadly  sick — this  effect 
alone  being  sought  for. 

I  was  assured  by  the  Sheik  who  had  presented 
me  with  this  strange  specimen  of  the  pigmies,  that 
a  few  days'  journey  westward  of  this  race  a  people 
existed  whose  ears,  of  almost  elephantine  proper- 


MAKRAKA    NIAM-NIAM.  •    TICKI-TICKI. 


MAERAKA   NIAM-NIAM. 


'        TIJE    SHEIK   PARAFIO.  267 

tions,  hung  nearly  to  tlieir  haunches. — told  me 
with  every  expression  of  sincerity  and  innu- 
merable "  Wallais  "  of  attestation.  I  give  it  place 
here  only  as  a  story,  as  it  was  told  to  me  to  enter 
perhaps  in  the  same  mythical  category  of  "  men 
with  tails,"  that  until  now  have  persisted  in 
evading  the  steps  of  the  traveller  in  Central  Africa, 
save  those  who  have  yielded  to  Munchausenism, 
in  endeavouring  to  attach  the  caudal  appendage 
to  the  Niam-Niam  people. 

On  the  18th  of  February,  accompanied  still  by 
Latroche,  I  left  this  station,  at  six  a.m.,  to  go  to 
Makraka  Kibire,  six  hours  distant,  where  I  had 
already  established  a  post.  The  country  pre- 
sents the  same  characteristics,  and  the  people 
along  the  route  showed  their  friendly  disposition 
by  their  cheerful  salutations.  A  march  of  two 
hours  and  a  half  brought  us  to  a  neatly-swept 
plateau  of  nicely-built  straw-huts,  where  the 
Sheik  Parafio,  and  his  numerous  wives  and  men, 
waited  to  welcome  our  coming. 

The  Makraka  Niam-Niam  Sheik  is  2^<^^^  excellence, 
the  greatest  "fat"  of  all  sheiks  yet  encountered. 
His  coiffure  is  an  object  of  the  greatest  care,  and 
the  most  intricate  detail  of  plaits,  that  in  many 
cases,  notwithstanding  the  unwilling  crispy  hair, 
is  reduced  into  several  long  cues  that  hang  down 
behind.  The  moustache  and  imperial,  though  not 
of  luxuriant  growth,  are  waxed  in  points,  that  lend 
a  very  distinguished  expression  to  a  figure  not 


268 


CENTRAL    AFRICA. 


unlike  that  of  a  cavalier  of  tlie  sixteenth  century. 
The  nose  and  ears  are  pierced  with  a  copper  ring, 
the  neck  is  encased  in  finely-wrought  copper  wire, 
well  burnished,  as  are  the  legs  and  arms.  The 
loins  are  covered  with  a  cotton  cloth,  from  which 
is  suspended  a  huge  knife,  which,  with  the  shield  is 
their  common  weapon  of  preference,  though  the 
most  beautiful  and  well-designed  lances  of  copper 


PARAFIO   AND    (SAMPITE)    WIFE,    SHEIK    OF    THE   NIAM-NIAM. 


and  steel  make  also  a  part  of  their  war  equipment. 
Their  muscular  limbs,  long  bodies,  and  short  legs, 
added  to  their  unexampled  courage  and  vigour, 
mark  them  as  splendid  types  of  warriors,  as  I  had 
ample  evidence  in  a  combat  with  the  Yanbari  on 
my  return  to  the  Bahr-el-Abiad. 

Their  bodies  are  traversed  in  fine  tattooed  lines  ; 
their  teeth  filed  to  a  poiut,  and  of  a  pearly  white- 


HIS   NUMEROUS   WIVES.  2G9 

ness.  Here,  as  elsewhere  among  the  tribes  at  or 
near  the  Equator,  both  in  Central  and  Oriental 
Africa,  the  negro  uses  a  small  piece  of  wood,  with 
which  he  continually  rubs  his  teeth,  and  thus 
secures  that  whiteness  that  may  be  remarked 
among  the  inhabitants  of  those  regions.  Parafio 
was  surrounded  by  his  apparently  countless  wives, 
one  of  whom  I  have  endeavoured  to  portray  here 
as  a  sample.  Copper-coloured  like  him,  or  an 
approach  to  that  tint,  these  women  are  short  in 
stature,  with  well-shaped,  diminutive  hands  and 
feet.  Like  the  men,  their  ankles,  arms,  and  neck 
are  encased  in  a  perfect  coat  of  mail,  either  of  steel  or 
copper,  the  rings  around  the  ankles  clanking  with 
great  noise  as  they  walk.  The  head  is  kept  painfully 
elevated  by  the  choking  necklace,  whilst  the  ears, 
nose,  and  mouth  are  either  brass  or  iron-clad. 
The  coiffure,  that  seems  their  sole  occupation,  as 
it  is  performed  reciprocally,  is  fashioned  much 
after  the  mode  of  an  Enghsh  damsel  into  a  chig- 
non behind.  With  this  exception  the  Niam-Niam 
female  is  entirely  "  in  puris  naturalibus,"  the  gar- 
land of  leaves,  already  referred  to  as  the  dress 
{sic)  of  Ticki-Ticki,  being  the  sole  attempt  at 
covering. 

Parafio  was  very  communicative,  and  as  well 
as  his  wives  seemed  greatly  delighted  at  our  visit. 
He  informed  me  that  he  was  the  father  of  250 
children!  and  that  100  of  his  wives  were  the 
mothers     thereof.       Involuntarily    I    exclaimed. 


270  CENTRAL    AFRICA. 

"  Augels  and  ministers  of  grace  defend  us  " 
from  tile  cliildren  !  Here  is  an  individual  who 
would  be  a  shining  light  in  Utah — a  not  im- 
probable competitor  for  the  honours  of  Brigham 
Young. 

Resuming  the  march,  amid  the  most  affectionate 
adieus  of  Parafio's  happy  family,  we  arrived  after 
a  march  of  four  hours  at  my  outpost,  where  I  had 
already  established  a  detachment. 

This  post  is  situated  at  the  base  of  Gebel 
Lingeterre,  from  which  Gebel  Baginsi  may  be 
seen — the  south-east  point  of  route  reached  by 
the  traveller  Schweinfurth,  coming  from  the  Bahr- 
el-Ghazal  in  company  with  Hamet,  the  Dongo- 
lowee  chief,  by  whom  he  had  been  piloted 
throughout  his  journey.  I  learned  afterward  that 
both  Abou  Hamet  and  Munza,  King  of  Monbutto, 
had  been  killed  by  their  own  people,  in  a  drunken 
orgy  at  the  latter' s  court. 

The  nature  of  the  soil  here  was  even  more 
highly  impregnated  with  iron,  and  the  natives 
might  be  seen  everywhere  smelting  the  ore,  and 
working  their  well-designed  and  deadly  pronged 
spears  and  arrows.  Their  copper  rings  and  bars, 
from  which  their  ornaments  were  fashioned, 
evidently  came  from  Darfour,  to  which  place 
there  was  a  road  twenty-five  days'  march  dis- 
tant, and  which  was  frequently  passed  over  by 
the  Dongolowee  emissaries  of  Zuber  Bey  (now 
Pacha),  who  had  years  before  entered  the  Bongo 


ZBEIBA    OP   TADL ALLAH.  271 

and    Niam-Niam   country   in   the  exploitation  of 

ivory. 

From  this  point  to  Lado,  the  head-quarters  of 
our  Government  on  the  Nile,  there  was  a  distance 
of  150  miles,  which  made  the  road  to  the  interior 
much    shorter    and   direct,    a   consideration  that 
would  be  invaluable  to  the  Government,  or  to  the 
future  explorer.     It  remained,  however,  in  order 
to    secure    its    safe    transit,  to    punish,    and   if 
necessary,  to  annihilate  the  Yanbari,  that  till  now 
had  been  the  scourge  of  their  fellow-tribes.     The 
Zeriba,  under  the  command  of  a  tall  black  named 
"  Fadlallah,"  differed  in  nothing  from  the  incon- 
gruous  collection  of  straw  huts,  within  a   straw 
enclosure,   under   the    general    denomination   of 
Zeriba ;  except,  perhaps,  more  motley  and  varied 
types  were  here  assembled,  in  addition  to  the  Niam- 
Niam,  Mundo,Muro,  Kiyeh,  and  Abaker,  there  were 
to   be    seen  the  "  Bongo,"  the  "  Monbutto  "  or 
"  Goorah-Goorah,"  and  the  "  Mittoo."     The  latter 
presents  the  most  curious  type  of  all.     The  upper 
lip  is  elongated  to  such  an  extent  as  to  resemble 
a  shed  to  the  mouth ;  whilst  in  the  centre  of  the 
lip  thus  fearfully  and  repulsively  enlarged,  a  piece 
of  ivory  is  inserted  about  the  size  of  a  Mexican 
dollar !      Curious,   I   asked  why  this   was    done, 
when  Said,  who  stood  by,  said,  "  Ye  Bey,  fantasiah 
betaou," — literally  her  "fetiche." 

Fadlallah,  the  Sheik,  not  wishing  to  be  outdone 
by  Latroche,  who  had  presented  me  with  Ticki- 


272  CENTEAL   AFlilGA. 

Ticki  as  an  "  antiqua,"  called  upon  me  and  asked 
me  if  I  would  accept  from  him  an  "  antiqua,"  a 
Monbutto  or  Goorah-Goorah  girl.  This  was  the 
daughter  of  Munza,  King  of  Monbutto,  before 
referred  to  as  having  come  with  Ticki-Ticki ; 
they  were  therefore  great  friends.  Their  meeting 
was  a  very  joyful  one,  not  unmarked  by  an  ex- 
hibition of  feeling  and  grace  as  they  carried  both 
arms  crossed,  to  cover  their  faces,  and  rushing 
towards  each  other,  knelt  in  mutual  embrace,  ex- 
claiming in  salutation,  in  the  euphonious  language 
of  the  Monbutto,  "  Ingassy  ! "  Goorah-Goorah  be- 
longed to  a  race  which  had  received  the  appellation 
of  Goorah-Goorah,  by  reason  of  their  pierced  ears, 
the  interior  of  tbat  membrane  being  cut  out  with 
a  knife  when  young  ;  whilst  a  large  hole  traversed 
the  exterior  part,  to  admit  an  iron  bar  two  inches 
in  length,  and  one  inch  in  diameter — "fantasiah 
betaou."  ^ 

Added  to  the  most  delicately-shaped  hands 
and  feet,  the  colour  of  her  skin — a  dark  bluish 
tinge — rendered  her  certainly  very  marked  among 
the  general  copper  colour  of  these  tribes.  She 
was  taken  ill  at  Khartoum  on  my  return,  and  un- 
able to  proceed — to  my  great  regret — I  was 
obliged  to  place  her  in  care  of  an  officer's  family, 
and  was  thus   deprived  of  the  pleasure  of  pre- 

^  I  noticed  the  same  custom  among  several  females  of  the 
M'Youah  tribe,  in  my  exploration  of  the  river  Juba  on  the 
oriental  coast  of  Africa  in  December,  1875. 


ANTHROPOPHAGY.  273 

senting  her,  in  company  with  Ticki-Ticki  and 
others,  as  an  "  antiqua"  at  Oairo. 

In  the  vicinity  of  my  camp  there  were  signifi- 
cant  accumulations  of  human  bones  and  skulls, 
memorials  of  that  periodic  flow  of  small-pox, 
known  among  the  Arabs  as  "  Geddireh,"  the 
scourge  of  Central  and,  indeed,  of  all  Africa,  as 
the  marked  and  pitted  face  of  the  negro  on  the 
east  coast  will  attest  its  prevalence.  Alas,  these 
bones  were  significant  of  still  another  evil  that  is 
disappearing,  and  is  being  now  confined  to  remote 
tribes  as  the  influence  of  the  Government  is 
being  felt.  Anthropophagy,  strange,  nay  horrible 
propensity,  is  relieved  however  of  much  of  the 
horror  that  it  inspires,  when  we  learn  that  the 
very  improvidence  of  nature  has  driven  these 
people  to  a  practice  of  which  I  observed  an 
intuitive  shame.  There  are  no  cattle  in  these 
anthropophagic  regions.  Overpowered  by  other 
tribes,  and  robbed  of  their  herds ;  or,  more 
probable  still,  that  they  sicken  and  die  from  the 
poisonous  weeds,  the  fatal  necessity  grew  into  a 
habit  that  now  is  disappearing.  I  was  assured, 
•after  careful  inquiry,  that  the  slain  in  battle, 
infants  or  the  aged,  are  devoted  to  this 
use.  The  hands  and  feet  are  considered  the 
most  delicate  portions — in  fact,  a  great  gour- 
mandise. 

It  is  a  remarkable  fact  that  the  Niam-Niam,  as 
well  as  other  tribes  to  whom  Anthropophagic  pro- 


274 


CENTEAL   AFRICA. 


pensities  are  attributed,  whether  in  the  Sandwich 
Islands  or  New  Zealand,  are  inferior  in  nothing  to 
tribes  that  look  with  horror  upon  human  flesh  as  an 
article  of  food.  The  starving,  miserable,  almost 
brute  negro  along  the  Bahr-el-Abiad,  disdains  to 
eat  human  flesh.  To  supply  the  want  of  animal 
food,  the  winged  ant  that  infests  the  ground  in  all 
Central  Africa,  is  made  a  great  delicacy  in  a  cuisine 
almost  entirely  vegetable.      In  walking  around  the 


NIAM-NIAM    GIELS    CATCHING   ANTS. 


camp  I  observed  the  manner  of  catching  them  as 
here  pictured. 

Seated  around  an  ant-hole  were  two  very  pretty 
maidens,  who  with  sticks,  beat  upon  an  inverted 
gourd  "  bourmah,"  in  cadenced  time  to  a  not  un- 
musical song,  that  seduced  from  its  hole  the  un- 
wary   ant,    who    approaching    the    orifice,    was 


DONGOLOWEB    NIGHT   ATTACK.  275 

quickly  seized,  and  pushed  into  a  mass  of  mud  to 
prevent  its  escape,  there  to  await  a  sufficient 
number  with  which  to  form  a  repast. 

In  addition  to  the  remarkable  skill  of  these 
people  in  the  manufacture  of  arms,  they  fabricate  a 
cloth  of  the  bark  of  a  wild  fig-tree  in  the  same 
manner  as  the  Ugunda,  the  cloth,  however,  being 
of  a  heavier  texture. 

A  marriage  is  contracted  by  the  suitor,  who 
presents  to  the  father  of  his  fiancee  a  huge  knife, 
with  curiously  wrought  handle  wound  with 
copper  wire.  One  or  more  are  given  in  ratio  as 
the  lady  may  be  valued ;  whilst  the  happy  suitor  of 
course  is  obliged  to  make  the  countless  rings  that 
must  encircle  nose,  neck,  ear,  arms,  and  legs  of  his 
future  spouse. 

Many  Dongolowee,  who  had  once  made  a  part 
of  the  bands  of  ivory-hunters  for  the  Khartoum 
merchants  were  here  living  in  idleness,  "  their  occu- 
pation gone."  The  occupation  of  the  country  then 
by  the  establishment  of  a  regular  military  post 
could  not  but  replace  disorder  and  give  protec- 
tion to  the  negro.  These  Dongolowee  were  still 
armed,  and  here  as  elsewhere  they  claimed  the 
country  as  their  own,  aud  looked  with  jealous 
hatred  upon  the  advent  of  the  Government. 
Fully  aware  of  this,  I  slept  with  my  Reilly  elephant 
JSTo  8  in  a  convenient  spot  near  my  head ;  whilst 
my    Soudanieh   guard,   with    Said   and   Abd-el- 

E-ahman,  were  stationed  near  my  door.     On  the 

U 


276  CENTRAL   APRIOA. 

niglit  of  the  19tli,  whilst  lying  awake,  I  heard  a 
stealthy  step  without,  which  approached  my  hut 
cautiously.  The  open  door  was  darkened  by  a 
figure,  the  shadow  of  which  caused  me  to  spring 
to  my  feet  at  the  same  instant  that  the  intruder  was 
seized  by  my  stalwart  guard.  Along  knife  was  in 
his  hand,  whose  office  it  was  unnecessary  to  explain. 
About  the  same  time,  from  their  Zeriba,  several 
balls  whistled  through  the  top  of  the  hut.  The 
fellow  was  kicked  out  of  the  camp  by  several 
vigorous  applications  of  army  shoes. 

On  the  21st  of  February,  at  an  early  hour, 
having  contemplated  my  disposition  of  troops,  I 
returned  to  "Makraka  Assariah,"  from  whence 
after  a  day's  stay,  I  proposed  to  return  to  "  Mak- 
raka Mundo,"  the  station  of  Latroche,  there  to  make 
arrangements  for  the  enlistment  of  theNiam-Niams, 
who  were  to  accompany  me  back  as  porters  of 
ivory. 

A  march  of  four  hours  broug^ht  us  to  the  Zeriba 
of  our  friend  Parafio,  who  prevailed  upon  Latroche 
to  induce  me  to  remain  until  the  next  mornino-.  At 
night  a  great  "  Congo  "  dance  was  given  in  my 
honour.  The  wonderfully  quick  and  graceful 
step  of  the  females  as  they  followed  their  liege 
lords  in  the  intricate  mazes  of  a  rinof  dance,  misfht 
have  caused  Terpsichore  herself  to  have  cried  for 
very  jealousy.  This  was  but  a  preface,  however, 
to  a  dance  to  be  given  me  on  arriving  at  the  next 
station. 


ELEPHANT   HUNTING.  277 

The  next  morning  at  six  a.m.  we  bade  adieu  to 
Parafio  and  his  amiable  household,  and  after  a 
march  of  two  hours  and  three-quarters,  we  arrived 
back  at  the  station  of  Makraka  Assariah,  amidst 
a  slight  rain,  where  we  were  received  with  great 
pleasure  by  the  Sheik  Achmet  Agha.  At  six  a.m. 
accompanied  by  my  soldiers,  I  went  and  bathed 
in  the  clear  waters  of  the  "  Hor  Torah,"  near  by, 
not  without  risk,  however,  for  even  this  little 
stream  is  full  of  crocodiles.  The  Sheik  told  me 
that  a  large  quantity  of  ivory  had  been  collected, 
and  the  work  of  recruiting  porters  was  going 
bravely  on. 

It  may  not  be  uninteresting  to  the  reader  to 
cite  here  the  manner  of  hunting  the  elephant,  which 
are  very  numerous  in  this  country.  Contrary  to 
the  general  supposition,  the  native  rarely  attacks 
the  elephant  with  his  lance.  Timid  and  fearful, 
the  negro  will  sometimes,  with  loaded  spears, 
await  the  passage  of  a  troop,  concealed  in  the 
overspreading  branches  of  some  huge  tree,  and 
then  let  drop  upon  them  the  heavy  spear,  which 
sinks  deep  into  the  back,  inflicting  a  wound  which 
if  not  immediately  fatal,  renders  him  so  weak  by 
loss  of  blood  as  eventually  to  fall  dead.  Another 
mode  is  to  dig  great  trenches,  that  are  co- 
vered with  leaves  and  sticks,  falling  into  which 
he  finds  himself  a  hopeless  prisoner,  the  wary 
beast,  however,  is  seldom  thus  secured. 

The  tall  grass  jungle  that  grows  so  rapidly  in 


278  CENTEAL   AFRICA. 

Central  Africa  during  tte  wet  season,  is  the  feed- 
ing-ground of  tlie  elephant,  whilst  at  the  same 
time  it  is  the  fatal  instrument  by  which  great 
numbers  are  secured.  A  large  area  of  this  grass 
is  selected  bj  the  Sheik  of  the  villages,  and  a  large 
circle  is  cut  around  it,  separating  it  by  a  road  or 
open  space  that  the  fire  may  be  confined  only  to 
the  devoted  spot.  Around  this  are  posted  senti- 
nels at  stated  intervals,  and  within  easy  communi- 
cation, whose  duty  it  is  to  signal  the  passage  of 
the  cordon  by  a  troop  of  not  less  than  forty  to 
fifty.  Any  troop  less  than  this  number  are  left  un- 
disturbed. At  a  given  signal  by  the  Sheik,  who  has 
been  notified,  fire  is  simultaneously  put  to  the  dry 
weeds,  and  soon  the  herd  is  encircled  by  a  wall  of  fire. 

The  trumpet  of  retreat  by  the  sheik  elephant 
comes  too  late,  as  the  maddened  herd  is  crushed 
and  annihilated  in  frantic  eff'orts  to  escape,  or  as- 
phyxiated by  the  impenetrable  smoke,  fall  dead, 
or  an  easy  prey  to  the  mass  of  negroes  assembled 
without.  The  blackened  though  uninjured  tusks 
are  given  to  the  Sheiks — the  flesh  of  the  elephant 
is  given  to  the  Abides. 

On  the  night  of  the  23rd  of  February,  a  great 
"  Congo  "  was  given  by  the  Sheik,  who  had  caused 
all  the  warriors  to  assemble  ;  and  invitations  had 
been  sent  to  all  the  Niam-Niam  lasses,  who 
came  even  from  as  far  as  Parafio,  and  did  honour 
to  the  occasion  by  brightening  up  their  copper 
and  iron  fastenings,  and  in  putting  on  fresh  fig- 


PREPARATIONS   TO   RETURN.  279 

leaves.  The  loose  bands  that  encased  tlieir 
ankles,  kept  perfect  time  in  loud  clanking  sound 
to  music  really  euphonious,  and  of  a  symphony, 
that  my  unmusical  ear  I  regret  cannot  translate 
here,  evoked  from  a  Sinon-like  wooden  horse 
that  was  beaten  on  its  sides  with  drumsticks,  or 
by  parallel  banana  trees  that  were  traversed  by 
different-sized  pieces  of  dry  wood,  upon  which 
several  performers  beat  successively.  This  musical 
instrument  as  well  as  drums  and  horns,  the  latter 
made  of  elephants'  tusks,  were  very  similar  to 
those  I  had  seen  in  Ugunda,  which,  in  addition  to 
the  manufacture  of  the  bark  cloth  already  referred 
to,  seemed  to  pdint  by  reason  of  customs  to  a 
possible  communication  with  the  people  of  the 
Equatorial  Nile  Basins,  though  the  language  has 
but  little  in  common. 

The  Sheik,  a  robust,  powerfully  developed  man, 
led  his  brave  warriors  in  the  dance,  holding  in  his 
hand  a  curiously  shaped  sword — his  insignia  of 
office,  whilst  the  round  little  forms  of  hundreds 
of  Niam-Niam  maidens  followed,  each  with  giddy 
swiftness  as  the  "  cancan  "  fantasiah  became  fast 
and  furious.  The  festivity  continued  until  the 
"  wee  sma'  hours  "  of  the  morning. 

On  the  24th  I  returned  to  Makraka  Mundo 
(station  of  Latroche),  where  I  proposed  to  make 
with  as  little  delay  as  possible,  my  final  prepara- 
tions for  return.  Menaced  already  by  an  early 
rainy  season  which  gave  now  the  usual  premonitions 


280  CENTRAL  APEICA. 

in  strong  winds  and  occasional  hailstorms  of  a 
most  violent  character,  the  Sheik  told  me  that 
"  El  Harif "  (winter)  preceded  the  rainy  season  at 
Gondokoro  by  at  least  a  month,  commencing  there 
about  the  10th  of  April  and  ending  the  10th  of 
October.  The  difference,  however,  in  latitude 
being  only  about  forty  minutes  south ;  it  seemed 
strange  that  the  rain  belt  should  thus  turn  Gon- 
dokoro on  the  west,  leaving  its  direct  march  by 
the  Bahr-el-Abiad  until  a  month  later. 

The  object  of  the  expedition  had  now  been 
successfully  accomplished,  and  its  results  in  the 
affirmation  and  establishment  of  the  authority  of 
the  Government,  and  in  valuable  information  of  the 
country  and  people  obtained,  was  surely  a  subject 
of  self- congratulation.  One  thing  alone  remained 
to  do,  the  punishment  of  the  Yanbari  tribe  on  my 
return.  My  attention  then  was  turned  wholly  to 
enlistment  of  the  Niam-Mam,  which  was  accom- 
plished with  but  little  difficulty  with  the  aid  of  pre- 
sents of  cotton  cloth.  The  Niam-Niam  men  are  very 
fond  of  a  waist  cloth,  and  the  distinction  of  a  piece 
of  European  fabric  in  exchange  for  their  habitual 
cloth  of  bark  of  tree,  was  eagerly  sought  for.  I 
promised  besides  to  give  them  meat  on  the  road, 
and  also  when  we  should  get  to  "  Lado  "  on  the 
river. 

On  the  night  of  the  6th  of  March  every  prepa- 
ration had  been  completed;  we  had  bound  to- 
gether with  ropes,  600  ivory  tusks  of  all  sizes,  and 


MUNDO    NIAM-NIAM    BOY. 


281 


600  Makraka  Niam-Niams  of  the  many  adjacent 
tribes  were  ready  to  leave  on  the  morrow.  Sheik 
Latroche  wished  to  return  with  me,  and  would 

take  his  irregular  Don - 
go]  0  wee     ivory-hunt- 
erSj  fifty  in  number. 
My  escort  of  Souda- 
niehs  that  would  re- 
turn with  me  had  been 
augmented  by  recruits 
to    thirty-six,  add  to 
this  the  inevitable  bint 
or  bints  that  had  vo- 
luntarily entered  into  ' 
bonds  of  matrimony, 
whether  with  my  sol- 
diers or  the  irregulars, 
I   was  to  have  in  my 
column    1375    souls ! 
A     Falstaffian      and 
Amazonian  troop,  that 
caused    me     to     ask 
Latroche     how    they 
should    be    fed?     he 
quieted  my  fears,  how- 
ever,  on    this    score, 
in  telling  me  that  the 
greater  part  were  the 
wives  of  his  Dongolowee  men,  and  that  they  car- 
ried   provisions    sufficient   for  the   route  on   the 


MUNDO,  A  NIAM-KIAM  BOY  OF  TWELVE 
YEARS. 


282  CENTRAL  AFEICA. 

backs  of  the  cows  tliat  they  had  trained  as  pack 
animals. 

Several  Mam-Niams  had  volunteered  to  join 
my  personal  escort,  two  of  whom  I  brought  with 
me  to  Cairo,  already  illustrated  here,  as  well  as  a 
"  Mundo  "  Niam-Niam  boy  of  twelve  years,  who 
is  given  likewise  from  a  photograph.  With  others 
they  were  intended  as  types,  which  I  hoped  to  pre- 
sent to  His  Highness  in  the  interest  of  ethnographic 
study,  that  might  perhaps  establish,  whether  by 
type  or  language,  that  mysterious  link  in  the  origin 
of  the  human  race,  which  want  of  tradition  with 
the  negro  has  committed  to  a  most  impenetrable 
mystery. 

In  addition  to  these  human  types,  I  had  with 
me  as  a  constant  companion  of  Ticki-Ticki  and 
Goorah-Goorah,  a  little  monkey  (Abou  Lange), 
whose  resemblance  to  a  Lord  Dundreary  was  so 
strikingly  true  that  in  my  mind  I  determined 
that  he  would  be  an  incontestable  link  a  la  Darwin 
between  the  brute  and  human  species.  Poor 
"  Abou  Lange  "  was  drowned  accidentally  on  the 
Nile,  in  his  frantic  efforts  to  avoid  me,  and  was 
thus  to  my  great  regret  lost  to  the  appreciation  of 
an  Ethnographical  Society  to  which  I  hoped  to  send 
him. 


CHAPTER  XX. 

Return  to  Lado — Irregulars  advanced  to  the  "  Yeh  " — Join 
them  in  the  morning — Improved  health  and  spirits — The 
Yanbari  oppose  our  passage  through  a  defile — -Their  com- 
plete defeat  by  the  Niam-Niam  and  my  regular  force — 
Burning  of  villages — Suspicious  fires — Cannibalism  of  the 
Niam-Niam — Imminent  peril  from  a  Boa — Snake  stories 
— Monstrous  Flies — Arrival  at  Lado — Received  with 
honours  by  the  garrison — Firmans  of  Sultan  Abd-el-Aziz 
and  his  Highness  the  Khedive  conferring  on  me  the  Order 
of  the  Medjidieh  and  the  rank  of  Colonel — With  sugges- 
tions as  to  Keba  Rega,  Rionga,  the  Dongolowee,  &c.,  I 
return  to  Cairo. 

6th  March,  1 875. — In  order  to  start  at  an  early  hour 
in  the  morning,  experience  had  told  me  to  start 
the  day  before.  Accordingly  I  had  ordered  the 
porters  of  ivory  and  the  irregulars  to  proceed  the 
night  before  as  far  as  the  river  *'Yeh,"  there 
encamp,  and  thus  be  ready  for  the  morrow's  march, 
a  piece  of  foresight  that  prevented  what  otherwise 
would  cause  me  vexatious  delay,  and,  in  my  irri- 
tated state,  the  emission  of  a  plurality  of  adjectives, 
in  which  the  Arab  language  is  excessively  rich. 

On  the  morning  of  the   7th,  accompanied  by 
Latroche,  Said,  Abd-el,  and  my  Soudanieh  guard, 


284  CENTRAL   AFEIOA. 

we  left  camp  to  rejoin  the  column  on  the  ''  Yeh  " 
that  awaited  our  arrival  to  resume  the  march 
north-eastward  to  the  Bahr-el-Abiad.  A  fearful 
thunder  and  rain  storm  had  raged  all  night,  and 
to  their  state  of  misery  I  owed  an  early  start. 

Though  still  a  victim,  as  were  also  my  men,  to 
almost  daily  attacks  of  fever,  they  resembled  in 
nothing  the  fearful  attacks  of  the  jungle  fever  to 
which  I  had  been  a  victim  during  my  six  months' 
absence  in  the  basin  of  the  Nile  Sources.  I  felt  a 
great  amelioration  of  health,  and  a  corresponding 
elevation  of  spirits,  as  with  eager  haste  I  pressed 
on  in  forced  marches  to  Lado.  I  longed  for  repose 
— a  rest  from  the  incessant  tramp,  tramp,  through 
jungle  and  mud,  with  all  its  consequent  misery 
and  suffering,  and  from  the  rude  shock  of  com- 
panionship with  savages  and  savage  nature. 
Nearly  a  year  had  passed  of  this  fretful  war,  that 
had  well-nigh  rendered  me  misanthropic,  and  at 
times  almost  brutal,  in  moments  of  haste  and 
hatred  of  those  details  of  travel  that  necessarily 
fell  upon  me.  Lado  then  was  looked  forward  to 
as  the  "be  all  and  end  all"  of  this,  and  my 
Soudanieh  never  once  murmured  at  the  long 
marches  I  imposed  upon  them.  A  tribute  I  pay 
them  here  with  pleasure,  adding,  that  during  long 
painful  campaigns,  as  with  the  Arab  soldier,  I  have 
never  experienced  other  than  the  greatest  devotion 
and  discipline  when  directly  under  my  command. 

On  the  9th  of  March,  at  mid-day,  we  arrived  in 


THE    YANBAEI    OPPOSE    OUR   PASSAGE.  285 

the  vicinity  of  the  spot  where  the  soldier  Ismaine 
Dasha  had  been  brutally  set  upon  and  mortally 
wounded.  His  comrades  the  Soudaniehs  were 
greatly  incensed,  but  my  orders  to  commit  no  act 
without  my  knowledge  were  strictly  obeyed.  It  was 
my  intention  to  reach  a  plateau  in  the  amphitheatre 
of  mountains  before  alluded  to,  and  once  there 
send  for  the  guilty  Sheik,  and.  demand  that  the 
murderer  should  be  surrendered.  This  step  was 
however  anticipated,  for  on  reaching  the  narrow 
defile — a  real  Thermopylae  pass  in  the  mountains 
that  gave  entrance  to  the  plateau  I  hoped  to  gain — 
1  found  the  summit  on  the  right  occupied  in  force 
by  the  Yanbari,  who  saluted  us  with  defiant  yells. 
Throwing  forward  the  irregulars  under  Latroche, 
to  clear  the  thick  jungle,  from  the  cover  of  which 
the  enemy  commenced  a  thick  shower  of  their 
poisoned  arrows.  Their  leader,  debusque,  fell  in 
our  path  with  a  bullet  through  his  brain.  Whilst  I 
commanded  the  fire  upon  the  overhanging  cliff, 
aided  by  the  explosive  shells  from  my  elephant 
gun,  and  drove  them  quickly  in  disorder  from  their 
position ;  and  we  passed  the  gorge  at  a  double- 
quick  with  our  heterogeneous  mass  of  followers 
without  loss,  whilst  a  desultory  fire  was  being- 
maintained  as  we  pushed  for  the  plateau. 

The  Niam-Niam  were  ordered  to  pile  up  their 
ivory,  about  which  I  threw  a  detail  from  my 
Soudanieh  as  a  guard,  as  well  as  a  cordon  of  sen- 
tinels   around   the    camp,   beneath    the    friendly 


286  CENTRAL   AFRICA. 

shade  of  a  large  tree  where  the  non-corabatants 
were  ordered  to  assemble.  With  my  Soudanieh 
and  the  irregulars  I  drove  the  Yanbari  from  the 
surrounding  jungle,  whilst  the  Niam-Niam,  eager 
for  contest,  were  sent  flying  into  their  midst  to 
engage  the  enemy  hand  to  hand.  I  confess  that 
I  never  saw  a  more  perfect  ideal  of  the  warrior, 
not  alone  in  muscular  display,  but  in  the  bounding 
elan  with  which  he  flew  rather  than  ran — the  right 
hand  grasping  the  huge  knife,  while  with  the 
bouclier  pressed  closely  to  his  side,  he  met  the 
enemy.  Covering  his  body  with  it  with  won- 
derful quickness  from  the  deadly  arrows,  that, 
his  adversary  in  _vain  expended  upon  the  broad 
shield,  he  threw  himself  upon  him  and  cut  or 
stabbed  the  now  defenceless  "  Yanbari "  to  death. 
When  the  "  tide  of  war  "  rolled  away  only  the 
yells  of  the  combatants  might  be  heard,  as  the 
Yanbari,  in  full  retreat,  endeavoured  to  gain  the 
mountains  in  our  rear. 

My  bugler  called  in  vain  the  *'  retreat."  When 
night  came  we  saw  the  smoke  and  flame  that  seemed 
to  envelope  the  whole  valley  around  the  plateau 
for  miles  in  a  cordon  of  fire ;  they  returned  only 
the  next  day  at  sundown,  having  burnt  at  least 
twenty  villages,  and  captured  about  forty  goats. 
My  soldiers  had  captured  thirteen  women  and 
children.  "Morbi"  was  brought  in  requisition, 
,and  explained  to  the  most  intelligent-looking  of 
the  lot,  who,  like   the   men,  looked  like  savage 


CANNIBALISM   OF   THE    NIAM-NIAM.  287 

beasts,  "  that  I  made  war  upon  them,  not  alone 
because  they  had  murdered  my  soldier,  but  that 
as  they  had  murdered  and  massacred  the  other 
tribes,  this  was  to  show  them  that  in  the  future 
they  should  not  be  permitted  to  kill  without  being 
killed;  that  '  Meri'  was  the  Father  of  all,  and  as 
such  desired  peace  and  good  will  among  them." 
They  were  released  and  told  to  go  and  tell  the 
Sheik  what  "  Ali  Bey  "  had  told  them. 

The  Yanbari  had  received  a  lesson  that  insured 
for  the  future  an  uninterrupted  road  from  the 
Bahr-el-Abiad  to  the  territory  of  the  friendly  Niam- 
Niam.  At  night,  at  places  without  the  cordon  of 
sentinels,  fires  were  burning  whose  fitful  flame 
and  glare  proclaimed  the  presence  of  more  inflam- 
mable matter  than  wood,  even  if  an  odour  of 
burnt  flesh  did  not  indicate  it  more  plainly  to  the 
olfactories.  On  inquiry  I  found  that  my  Niam- 
Niams  had  built  these  fires  and  were  feasting 
there.  "  Horresco  referens ! "  The  meat  that  I  had 
promised  them  was,  without  doubt,  the  unlucky 
Yanbari  "  potted  "  that  day.  I  did  not  care  to 
investigate  the  matter  closely,  appreciating  the 
delicacy  of  their  retirement  from  camp,  and  as 
well  feeling  here  the  force  of  the  maxim,  that 
"  where  ignorance  is  bliss  'tis  folly  to  be  wise." 

We  resumed  the  march.  On  the  following 
morning  (the  11th)  there  was  a  "  drowsy  stillness  " 
in  the  heated  atmosphere  that  was  all  the  more 
sensible,  since  only  a  few  days  before  the  air  had 


288  CENTRAL   AFEICA. 

been  rent  witli  wild  whoops  and  yells  of  a  defiant 
enemy,  to-day  not  a  living  soul  was  to  be  seen. 
The  Yanbari  had  been  nearly  annihilated. 

On  the  night  of  the  12th  we  had  reached  the 
spot  where  Corporal  Ali  Galal  had  died.  Here, 
as  the  sun  was  setting,  we  bivouacked,  tired  and 
worn-out  with  a  long  day's  march.  Under  the 
influence  of  fatigue,  this  was  my  almost  habitual 
moment  of  repose,  for  I  seldom  slept  at  night. 
Owing  to  an  unaccountable  restlessness  that  caused 
me  to  spend  the  long  vigil  of  the  night  in  smoking 
and  in  thoughts  that  wandered  back  over  a  va- 
ried and  chequered  existence,  I  had  crept  away  to 
a  secluded  spot,  and  had  fallen  asleep  near  the  bank 
of  a  dry  stream,  when  I  was  suddenly  awakened  by 
the  consciousness  of  the  pressure  of  something 
horrible.  Was  it  my  good  star,  or  the  natural  re- 
pulsion that  had  shocked  my  nerves  and  saved  me 
from  a  Laocoon-like  embrace  ?  At  my  feet,  its 
ponderous  jaws  wet  with  the  fatal  horrible  saliva, 
lay  a  huge  boa ;  transfixed  to  the  spot,  I  called  my 
soldiers  to  me,  who  soon  despatched  him,  and 
made  a  savoury  meal  of  his  flesh,  whilst  the  skin 
was  divided  into  pieces  that  were  to  act  as  charms 
against  the  devil  (?) — a  common  superstition  which 
exists  among  all  negro  races  that  even  civilization 
does  not  disabuse  them  of. 

Snake  stories  were  rife  around  the  camp-fire  at 
night.  Near  my  tent-door  a  veteran  Dongolowee 
told  in  exaggerated  strain,  in  the  "  historic  tense  " 


AERIVAL   AT   LADO.  289 

of  liow  lie  had  "  seen  snakes  :"  tliat  lie  had  visited 
a  country  where  the  natives  always  slept  with 
their  legs  crossed,  or  forming  a  Y  to  prevent  the 
snake  from  swallowing  them  ;  that  a  failure  to  do 
so,  was  to  be  swallowed  and  digested  ere  morning. 
Another  aspirant  for  the  crown  of  the  marvellous 
delivered  a  story  on  flies.  With  reference  to  the 
monster  flies  described  as  infesting  the  Bahr-el- 
Abiad  in  the  vicinity  of  Fashoda,  and  near  the 
mouth  of  the  Saubat,  the  eloquent  story-teller  said 
the  flies  here  were  mere  Ticki-Tickis  in  compa- 
rison with  the  "  Dibbans  "  he  had  seen  in  a  country 
— geography  of  which,  however,  was  not  clear 
even  to  him — where  the  natives  used  them  as  a 
substitute  for  horses  !  ending  the  story  with  a  very 
emphatic  Wallai  (by  God),  in  order  to  "  hedge  " 
the  observations  of  doubt  that  generally  followed 
too  great  a  tension  of  truth,  expressed  in  Souda- 
nieh,  by  "  Kaddab  Sakit,  ye  Achoui ! "  (A  barefaced 
lie,  0  my  brother  !) 

Notwithstanding  the  halt  of  thirty-six  hours  in 
the  Yanbari  country  we  had  marched  at  such  a 
rate,  that  on  the  14th,  in  advance  of  my  column, 
I  arrived  at  Lado  at  seven  a.m.  :  and  leaving  some 
at  Laguno,  the  village  of  "  Morbi "  the  Sheik, 
though  having  marched  that  day  seven  hours  and 
a  half,  I  left  again  with  my  escort,  favoured  by  a 
bright  moonlight,  and  marched  three  hours,  when 
by  the  darkness  and  fatigue  we.  were    compelled 

to  halt  and   wait  the  dawn    of  day.     Resuming 

X 


290  CENTEAL   AFRICA. 

the  march  we  arrived  in  camp  at  the  early  hour 
named. 

My  arrival  had  already  been  announced,  and  1 
found  the  garrison  of  250  men  of  all  arms  paraded 
to  receive  me  with  all  honours,  a  compliment  I 
did  not  appreciate  until  the  affable  commandant, 
Ah  Loutfi  Bimbachi,  informed  me  that  he  had 
orders  to  that  effect ;  and  he  insisted,  notwith- 
standing my  soiled  and  tattered  uniform,  that  I 
should  appear  immediately  before  the  troops. 

Accordingly  I  dismounted,  and  accompanied 
by  the  Commandant  and  my  old  friend  Sala 
Effendi,  the  post  doctor,  who  had  braved  the 
rigours  of  the  climate  under  the  two  expeditions, 
one  "  among  the  few  survivors  " — turned  towards 
the  troop  that  now  presented  arms  as  Com- 
mandant Loutfi  read  the  firmans  of  His  High- 
ness the  Sultan  Abd-el-Aziz,  and  of  His  Highness 
the  Khedive  Ismail  Pacha,  conferring  upon  me 
the  grade  of  Colonel  and  the  Cross  of  the  Third 
Class  of  the  Medjidieh :  conferred  upon  me  for 
services  indicated  in  the  letter  of  transmission 
from  His  Highness  the  Prime  Minister  of  War, 
Hussein  Pacha,  addressed  to  Colonel  Gordon, 
C.'B.,  the  Governor  General  of  the  Equatorial 
Provinces : — 

"Le  Caire,  7"""  Decembre,  1874, 
"  Ministere  de  la  Guerre, 

"  Cabinet  de  Ministre. 

"  Colonel, — Le  Khedive  voulant  donner  a  M.  le  Lieut.-Col. 


FIRMANS    OF    THE    SULTAN   AND    KHEDIVE.        291 

Long  un  temoignage  de  la  satisfaction  pour  la  belle  conduite, 
le  courage  et  la  fermete  que  cet  officier  a  montre  dans  les  deux 
engagements, qui  ont  eu  lieuaMrooli,  pres  la  ligne  de  I'Equateur, 
lui  a  eonfere  le  grade  de  Colonel  et  la  Croix  de  I'Ordre  du 
Medjidieh. 

"  Je  vous  envoie  ci-joint,  Colonel,  le  firman  du  grade,  que 
je  vous  prie  de  remettre  au  Colonel  Long  Bey,  en  lui  adressant 
mes  felicitations  personelles. 

"  Recevez,  Colonel,  I'expression  de  mes  meilleur  sentiments. 

(Signe)  "Hussein. 

"  A  Monsieur, 

"  Monsieur  le  Colonel  Gordon, 

"  Gouverneur  General  de  I'Equateur." 

On  the  17tli  I  went  to  Gebel  Regaf,  south  of 
Gondokoro,  in  order  to  present  my  reports,  and 
confer  with  him  on  many  important  questions,  in 
relation  to  Central  Africa  and  its  exploration. 

I  desired  that  Keba  Rega  might  be  punished  as 
I  before  suggested,  assured  that  the  speedy  re- 
establishment  of  E-ionga  as  king  at  Mrooli  would 
cement  the  union  made  with  M'Tse,  and  drive 
Keba  Eega  from  the  country,  thus  destroying  the 
nucleus  of  slave-trading  arrangements  through 
the  Dongolowee,  with  whom  this  Keba  Rega  was 
leagued  in  bitter  hostility  to  the  Government. 
With  a  troop  of  men  mounted  either  on  mules  or 
horses,  the  country  could  then  easily  be  subjected, 
and  the  question  of  the  Albert  Nyanza  readily 
solved. 

I  further  desired  to  return  to  the  Niam-Niam 
country  with  cavalry,  (for  I  had  proved  how 
baseless  was  the   assertion  that  horses  may  not 


292  CENTEAL   AFEICA. 

live  in  Central  Africa,)  and,  striking  westward 
through  the  Monbutto  and  Akka  tribes,  reach  the 
Atlantic. 

It  was  resolved  finally  that  I  should  return  to 
Cairo,  there  to  recuperate  my  health,  greatly 
impaired,  recommended  by  the  Governor  General 
in  the  most  flattering  terms,  to  the  command  of 
an  expedition,^  that  with  a  scientific  object  should 
proceed  from  a  point  on  the  Oriental  Coast  of 
Africa,  on  the  Equatorial  line,  to  the  Lake  Victoria 
Nyanza. 

Nothing  was  left  me  save  to  extend  to  the 
Governor  General  my  earnest  thanks,  in  return 
for  his  flattering  estimate  of  the  work  I  had 
accomplished.  Bidding  him  adieu,  to  go  to 
other,  perhaps  more  dangerous  fields  of  service, 
I  offered  him  my  sincere  hopes  for  his  success  in 
the  one  object  which  chiefly  engaged  his  atten- 
tion ;  namely,  the  placing  (and  making  a  thorough 
exploration  of  that  sheet  of  water)  a  steamer  on 
the  Lake  Albert  Nyanza. 

1  See  Note  in  Appendix. 


CHAPTER  XXL 

Departure  for  Cairo — Said  and  Abd-el-Rahman  accompany 
me — Arrival  at  Khartoum — The  captive  Sultan  of  Dar- 
four — Arrival  at  Berber — Hamed  Halifa — Major  Prout — 
Cross  the  Desert  on  a  camel — The  Mirage — Korosko — 
Assouan — Philae — Meet  some  European  Friends — Siout 
— Arrival  at  Cairo — Receive  a  Message  from  His  High- 
ness the  Khedive — Summoned  to  the  Palace,  I  make  my 
presents  to  His  Highness,  of  Ethnological  specimens,  &c. 
— Said  and  Abd-el-Rahman  receive  promotion  and  the 
Medjidieh  at  the  Court  of  His  Highness  the  Khedive — 
Inauguration  of  New  Geographical  Society  at  Cairo. 

Ojst  the  night  of  the  20th  of  March  I  returned  to 
Lado  in  dahabieh,  reaching  there  at  four  o'clock 
on  the  morning  of  the  21st,  when  having  dis- 
charged whatever  responsibihties  that  were 
attached  to  me  by  reason  of  my  ofi&cial  position, 
I  left  Lado  on  the  morning  of  the  22nd  for  Khar- 
toum; the  steamer  "Tessa,"  No.  9, ,  being  in 
readiness  to  sail. 

Sa'id  and  Abd-el-E-ahman  were  to  accompany  me 
to  Cairo,  for  I  wished,  in  addition  to  the  service  they 
could  yet  render  me,  to  present  them  personally 
to  His  Highness  the  Khedive,  as  a  reward  for  their 


294  CENTRAL   AFRICA. 

heroic  courage  and  devotion.  To  tlieir  care  were 
committed  two  Niam-Niam  warriors,  who  volun- 
teered to  accompany  me  ;  as  also  another  Niam- 
Niam  boy,  a  Ugunda  boy,  Ticki-Ticki,  and  Goo- 
rah-Goorah.  All  these  were  to  be  given  to  his 
Highness,  as  I  have  before  stated,  in  the  interest 
of  ethnographic  study :  types  of  races  that  had 
never  before  been  .presented  to  the  civilized  world, 
certainly  never  under  such  good  auspices ;  since 
their  history,  language,  customs,  and  arms  were 
illustrated  by  them,  bringing  what  had  been 
fiction  or  romance  into  the  realm  of  reality. 

Without  lingering  on  the  route  that  has  been 
heretofore  explained,  it  is  only  necessary  to  note 
that  the  passage  was  without  incident ;  the  greater 
part  of  the  time  I  was  ill  with  fever. 

On  the  7th  of  April,  in  the  afternoon,  we  arrived 
at  Khartoum,  sixteen  days  from  Lado,  telegraphed 
my  arrival,  and  received  orders  from  H.  E. 
Khairy  Pacha  to  come  at  once  to  Cairo  via  Korosko. 
A  part  of  the  river  between  Khartoum  and  Berber 
was  unnavigable  at  this  season ;  the  annual  rise 
in  the  Nile  would  not  occur  until  a  month  later, 
when  the  influence  of  the  Equatorial  rains  would 
then  be  felt,  I  was,  therefore,  obliged  to  proceed 
to  Berber  by  the  tedious  "  nugger." 

Whilst  at  Khartoum  I  visited  the  captive  Sultan 
of  Darfour,  Abd-el-Rahmed,  the  brief  successor 
of  his  brother,  killed  in  the  decisive  battle  that 
made  Darfour  a  province  of  Egypt.  Though  the 
present  Sultan  continued  the  conflict,  soon  con- 


MAJOR  PEOUT.  295 

quered,  he  liad  surrendered,  and  was  now  on  his 
way  to  Cairo,  formally  to  make  his  submission  to 
the  Khedive.  He  was  stretched  on  a  divan  when  I 
was  ushered  in.  His  feet  were  entirely  nude,  but 
there  was  a  certain  savage  native  dignity  that 
hedged  in  the  fallen  monarch,  and  became  him 
well  in  his  fallen  fortunes. 

Onthel6th  of  Aprillbad  adieu  to  Messrs.  Giegler, 
Orlowski,  Camboni,  and  others  of  the  European 
colony,  as  well  as  to  Mohamet  and  Yusuf  Bey 
representing  the  Arab  element,  and  left  Khartoum. 
Ten  days  of  fretful  impatience  and  discomfort, 
and  quarrels  with  Reis,  who  seemed  determined 
to  irritate  me  and  retard  my  departure,  finally 
brought  us  to  Berber.  I  was  compelled  to  put  on 
shore  ReisMustapha,  replacing  him  by  his  second  in 
command,  ordering  the  former,  as  a  punishment, 
to  walk  at  least  a  distance  of  twenty  miles  on  shore. 

Arrived  at  Berber,  I  was  warmly  welcomed  by 
my  old  friend  the  great  Sheik  of  Korosko,  Hamed 
Halifa.  Seated  in  his  garden,  beneath  the  grate- 
ful shade  of  overhanging  orange,  lemon,  and  date 
trees,  I  was  surprised  to  hear  my  name  pro- 
nounced in  much  the  same  way  as  Stanley  ac- 
costed Livingstone,  "Colonel  Long,  I  believe!"  I 
started  in  vain  attempt  at  recognition  of  a  bronzed 
and  bearded  face.  It  proved  to  be  Major  Prout, 
the  gallant  young  American  officer,  whose  valu- 
able work  in  Darfour,  and  Kordofan  since  that 
time,  will  certainly  give  him  a  prominent  place 
among  the  explorers  of  those  regions. 


296  CENTRAL   AFRICA. 

Witli  the  exception  of  two  brief  ceremonious  visits 
made  at  tlie  head-quarters,  I  had  scarcely  uttered 
a  word  of  the  vernacular  since  my  absence  from 
Cairo.  With  what  importunate  eagerness  then  I 
plied  him  with  a  thousand  questions,  of  what  was 
occurring  in  the  world  without ;  since  leaving 
Khartoum  I  had  received  neither  papers  nor 
letters.  Major  Prout  had  arrived  at  Cairo  a  few 
days  before  my  departure  for  Central  Africa,  and 
therefore  I  had  known  him  but  slightly.  He  was 
en  route  to  take  service  in  exploration  in  Darfour. 
As  I  lay  upon  the  grass,  in  most  disreputable 
dress  that  would  have  well  become  a  rag  man, 
with  haggard  features,  worn  and  emaciated  by 
disease,  I  fancied  that  Prout  regarded  me  with 
something  akin  to  horror ;  for  he  doubtless  remem- 
bered me  vigorous  and  muscular,  as  when  I  had 
left  Cairo  only  fifteen  months  before.  I  kept  him 
until  a  late  hour  a  victim  to  incessant  questioning. 
He  proceeded  next  day  on  the  nugger  in  which  I 
had  come  to  Khartoum ;  whilst,  at  the  moment  I 
bade  him  adieu,  I  was  mounting  my  camel  en  route 
for  Abou-Hamed,  from  thence  to  across  the  "  At- 
moor  *'  to  Korosko. 

Three  hundred  and  fifty  miles  of  desert  on 
camel-back  is  at  all  times  a  serious  enterprise: 
and  the  more  so  when  you  are  to  run  against 
time,  on  account  of  the  absolute  want  of  water: 
for  on  the  Korosko  desert,  water  must  be 
cairied  in  skins  from  Abou-Hamed,  from  which 


THE    MIRAGE.  297 

point  the  route  is  an  arid  scorching  sandy 
waste. 

The  water  taken  from  the  river  at  Abou-Hamed, 
becomes  quite  putrid,  and  there  is  one  well  only 
on  the  road,  the  water  of  which  is  like  Epsom 
salts,  absolutely  undrinkable  by  man,  and  rarely 
by  beast ;  unless  the  direst  necessity  compels  one 
to  drink  the  unpalatable  and  aperient  liquid.  The 
route  is  marked  by  countless  carcasses  of  camels, 
and  the  rude  grave  of  his  driver. 

On  this  desert  not  many  years  ago,  a  regiment 
was  passing  to  Berber.  Deceived  by  the  mirage, 
on  all  sides  presenting  to  the  eye  lakes  of  trans- 
parent water,  the  men  maddened  by  thirst  could 
no  longer  be  restrained  ;  and  notwithstanding  the 
protestations  of  their  guide,  broke  from  their  ranks 
in  eager  haste  in  quest  of  water,  too  late  to  dis- 
cover the  fatal  illusion  ;  for  most  of  them  perished 
with  thirst.  On  through  horrid  heat  and  blasts 
of  sand,  we  pushed  our  forced  march  by  day; 
stopping  at  sunset  to  feed  camels  and  men,  and 
snatch  a  moment's  rest;  to  resume  the  march 
during  the  whole  night,  rendered  the  more  difl&- 
cult  since  the  extremely  cold  temperature  induced 
sleep,  and  the  struggle  to  keep  awake  was  painful 
in  the  extreme.  We  crossed  the  well-defined  bed 
of  a  river,  called  by  the  camel  drivers,  "  El  Bahr  " 
(the  River).  Along  its  un watered  bed,  solitary 
and  dwarfed  palms  still  had  a  sickly  existence, 
but  there  could  be  no  doubt  that  the  Red  Sea  or 


298  OBNTEAL   AFHIOA. 

an    affluent     had     once    trickled     through    this 
channel. 

On  the  8th  May,  at  seven  a.m.,  we  arrived  at  Ko-' 
rosko,  having  made  the  transit  from  Berber,  in  the 
short  space  of  ten  days ;  averaging  at  least  thirty- 
five  miles  per  day.     Here  was  finally  the  term  of 
painful  marches,   and  sea  of  troubles,  that   had 
marked  my  daily  life  for  many  months.    My  arrival 
had  been  anticipated :  and  a  palatial  dahabieh  had 
been  ordered  to  be  in  readiness,  to  convey  me  to 
Assouan.     A  few  hours  only  were  necessary  for 
the  purchase  of  supplies  for  the  route,  and  the 
reception  of  the  "  Mudir  "  (Governor)  and  other 
functionaries,  and  we  left  in  the  afternoon.     The 
saloon  and  divans  of  the  boat  were  elegant  in  all 
their  appointments ;  and  I  felt  almost  a  childish 
delight  in  the  pleasure  it  afforded  me  to  repose 
once  more  upon  mattress  and   sheets,  a  luxury 
which  must  be  dispensed  with  in  Africa,  at  least 
in  my  experience.     A  copy  of  Malte  Brun  enabled 
me  to  appreciate  the  historic  banks  of  the  Nile, 
whose  monuments,  and  sites  of  dead  cities,  mark 
the  mysterious  grandeur  of  ancient  Egypt.     Eight 
days  were  consumed  in  the  passage  to  Assouan, 
where  we  arrived  on  the  16th  of  May,  early  in  the 
morning.     Ere  the  sun  had  yet  risen,  I  climbed 
the  steep  ascent  that  led  to  the  Temple  at  Philae, 
that  cradle  of  art,  culture,  and  mystic  rites,  which 
gave  to  Egypt  her  mysterious  and  imperishable 
monuments.      Here    it    may    be    said,  as    Malte 
Brun  wrote  of  Syene  and  Assouan  close  by,  "  Ici 


MEET    SEVERAL   FEIENDS.  299 

les  Pharaons  et  les  Ptolemees  ont  eleve  ces 
temples,  et  ces  palais  a  moitie  caclies  sous  le  sable 
mobile;  ici  les  Komains  et  les  Arabes  ont  bati 
ces  forts,  les  murailles,  et  au-dessus  des  debris  de 
toutes  ces  constructions  des  inscriptions  fran- 
gaises  attestent  que  les  guerriers  et  les  savants 
de  r Europe  moderne  sont  venu  placer  ici  leurs 
tentes  et  leurs  observatoires.  .  .  .  Sur  la  surface 
lisse  de  ces  rocbers  des  sculptures  liieroglypliiques 
representent  les  divinites  Egyptiennes,  les  sacri- 
fices et  les  offrandes  de  cette  nation;  qui  plus 
qu'aucune  autre  a  su  s'identifier  avec  son  pays 
et  qui  dans  les  sens  les  plus  litteral  a  grave  sur  le 
globe,  les  souvenirs  de  sa  gloire." 

Wliilst  musing-  bere  an  hour  alone  the  shrill 

a 

whistle  of  a  locomotive  recalled  me  from  my  reve- 
ries from  the  temple  of  Ibis.  The  Mudir  came  to 
receive  me,  and  to  inform  me  that  the  steamer 
"  Foad  "  had  been  awaiting  my  arrival  for  several 
days,  and  that  if  it  pleased  me  the  steamer  could 
proceed  at  once.  Mr.  Kilgour,  chief  engineer  to 
Mr.  Fowler  in  the  construction  of  the  Soudan 
Railway,  had  written  me  a  most  kind  letter  of 
welcome  from  Wady-Halfai,  and  introduced  me  at 
the  same  time  to  several  gentlemen  of  the  com- 
pany, Mr.  Gooding,  Mr.  Varley  (artist),  and  Mr. 
Bake  well,  who  had  come  down  in  the  train. 
Accompanied  by  my  escort,  we  entered  the  railway 
carriages,  which  in  a  few  moments  took  us  to 
Assouan,  and  on  board  the  steamer  "Foad."  In  the 
interval  of  getting  up  steam,  I  returned  to  Assouan, 


300  CENTRAL   AFRICA. 

and  breakfasted  with  Mr.  Gooding,  and  in  his 
genial  company  relished  my  return  to  civilization. 
Mr.  Bakewell  was  going  to  Cairo,  so  we  returned 
together  on  board  and  steamed  towards  Siout, 
stopping  a  few  hours  en  route  to  visit  those 
temples,  palaces,  and  piles  stupendous  of  Edfou, 
Esneh,  Louxor,  Medinet-el-Abou  and  Karnak  by 
moonlight,  the  Memnonium  in  all  its  glory,  and 
"  Memnon's  statue  that  at  sunrise  played."  In 
vain  we  tried  to  make  the  latter  resound  to  the 
tapping  of  a  hidden  minstrel,  as  even  in  ancient 
days  sceptics  were  wont  to  accuse  Egyptian 
priests  of  jugglery  in  secretly  causing  the  statue  to 
resound,  by  hiding  in  its  hollow  side.  To  visit 
these  scenes  was  indeed  the  realization  of  many 
of  my  boyish  fancies :  but  could  imagination  have 
conjured  up  so  strange  a  story,  that  fate  should 
direct  my  steps  hither,  fresh  from  the  fountains 
of  the  Nile  which  to  the  ancient  architects  of  these 
monuments  had  been  a  problem  whose  solution 
they  could  never  accomplish. 

Away  !  nor  let  me  loiter  here :  for  the  steamer's 
whistle  recalls  us  to  resume  our  route,  and  pro- 
ceeding we  arrived  at  Siout  the  21st  of  May, 
where  we  were  received  by  the  Wekil  of  the 
Governor.  Our  baggage  and  staff  were  sent  to 
the  railway  station — Mr.  B.  and  myself  passed 
the  day  in  wandering  through  the  streets  of  Siout, 
that  ranks,  with  its  well-built  houses  of  brick  and 
lively  bazaars,  as  an  important  city  of  Egypt.  The 
station  master  kindly  offered  us  the  divan  at  the 


MESSAGE    FEOM   THE    KHEDIVE.  601 

station  for  the  night,  as  Siout  does  not  yet  boast 
the  luxury  of  a  hotel. 

The  morning  of  the  22nd  we  were  en  route  by 
the  train,  arriving  at  Cairo,  the  "  city  of  the  Victo- 
rious," at  half-past  six  p.m. 

The  following  morning,  the  announcement  of 
my  arrival  was  made  to  His  Highness  the  Khedive, 
who  immediately  sent  a  message,  that  he  would 
receive  me  at  the  palace  of  Abdin.  On  my  being 
announced  and  ushered  in,  he  advanced  towards 
me,  and  took  me  by  the  hand,  and  in  terms  too 
flattering  to  repeat  thanked  me  for  what  I  had 
accomplished  in  Central  Africa ;  not  alone  for  the 
establishment  of  his  authority  in  those  regions,  but 
in  a  commercial  and  scientific  sense ;  and  for  the 
amelioration  of  the  condition  and  protection  pro- 
mised to  tribes  of  negroes  amicably  disposed. 

The  suppression  of  the  slave-trade,  that  was 
sure  to  follow  the  stringent  measures  which  His 
Highness  had  taken,  was  referred  to,  and  my 
action  was  greeted  with  the  greatest  satisfaction, 
convincing  me  how  sincerely  and  ardently  the 
Khedive  hopes  for  the  total  extinction  of  a  system 
that  is  no  longer  a  want,  or  even  a  luxury  (as 
it  once  was)  to  Egypt. 

A  few  days  after  I  was  again  summoned  to  the 
presence  of  the  Khedive  at  the  palace  of  Kasr-el- 
Nil,  where  surrounded  by  his  ministers,  high 
functionaries  of  the  Court,  and  officers  of  the 
army  and  navy,  he  received  me,  with  renewed 
expressions  of  sympathy  and  approval.       I   had 


302 


CENTRAL   AFEICA. 


taken  tliis  occasion  to  present  him  a  quantity  of 
arms,  and  utensils  of  war  and  peace,  of  the  tribes 
visited  southward  to  the  sources  of  the  Nile,  and 
westward  of  the  river  to  the  Niam-Niam  country. 


ABD-EL  EAHMEN. 


SAID   BAGAEEAH. 


At  this  time  also  I  presented  to  him  the  two  Niam- 
Niam  warriors,  a  Niam-Niam  boy,  an  Ugunda 
boy  (M'Tse),  and  Ticki-Ticki,  the  dwarf*  woman, 
portraits  of  whom  have  been  given  in  this  book 
as  types  of  races  that  cannot  fail  to  be  of  inte- 


NEW    GEOGRAPHICAL    SOCIETY.  303 

rest  to  ethnograpliers — tlie  latter  especially  so 
as  the  first  adult  ever  presented  to  the  civilized 
world  from  a  race  vaguely  mentioned  by  Herodotus, 
but  whose  actual  existence  now  was  left  no  longer 
in  the  realm  of  doubt. 

On  the  30tli  of  May  His  Highness  summoned 
me  again  to  the  palace  of  Kasr-el-Nil,  where  were 
assembled  many  high  functionaries  and  officers 
of  the  army  and  navy ;  and  my  soldiers  Said  and 
Abd-el-Rahman  were  ordered  to  accompany  me. 

In  eloquent  and  moving  words  the  Khedive 
alluded  in  flattering  terms  to  their  devotion  and 
courage,  as  represented  by  me,  in  the  affair  at 
Mrooli,  and  their  subsequent  service  with  me  in 
the  second  expedition.  As  a  mark  of  his  favour 
he  placed  in  my  hand  a  firman,  conferring  on  them 
the  grade  of  Bash-Schouish  (Sergeant-Major),  with 
decorations  of  the  5th  class  of  the  Medjidieh, 
that  I  might  attach  them  to  their  breasts.  For 
the  first  time  in  the  annals  of  the  service,  a  common 
soldier  had  been  decorated  ;  and  the  ceremony  was 
rendered  the  more  significant,  "by  this  prompt 
and  gracious  recognition  of  merit  by  the  Khe- 
dive himself. 

If  my  reception  by  him  had  been  flattering  in 
the  extreme,  it  was  no  less  so  by  the  Cairene  com- 
munity. I  had  been  followed  in  the  jungles  of 
Africa  with  an  afi'ectionate  interest,  which  on  my 
return  showed  itself  in  demonstrations  that  at 
every  step  attended  me.  I  was  weak,  emaciated, 
sick  in  body  and  spirit,  but  the  consciousness  of 


304  CENTEAL   AFRICA. 

sympathy  and  affection  that  now  surrounded  me, 
awoke  me  to  a  vitality,  that  months  of  constant 
fever,  and  the  cold  companionship  of  savages,  had 
nearly  stifled  and  frozen  in  my  breast. 

On  the  2nd  of  June  the  inauguration  of  La  So- 
ciete  Khediviale  de  Geographic  took  place,  under 
the  presidency  of  Dr.  Schweinfurth,  the  Prus- 
sian traveller,  who  had  been  nominated  to  that 
position.  His  Highness  Prince  Hussein  Pacha, 
Minister  of  War,  honoured  it  with  his  presence, 
as  did  also  the  high  functionaries  of  the  Govern- 
ment, the  Consuls  General,  and  distinguished 
foreign  savants.  On  the  11th  of  June,  in  response 
to  an  invitation  from  the  president  of  the 
Society,  I  delivered  an  address,  giving  a  resume 
of  my  expedition  and  its  results,  which  was  alluded 
to  by  the  French  press  at  Alexandria  in  a  flattering 
notice,  as  will  be  seen  in  the  extract  in  the  note 
below. ^ 

His  Highness  the  Khedive,  with  kind  conside- 
ration for  my  health,  ordered  me  to  go  at  once  to 
Europe,  there  to  regain,  if  possible,  strength  and 
health  for  other  service,  that  I  was  assured  awaited 
me  on  my  return:  and  I  obeyed  the  kind  command. 

*  "  Malgre  une  chaleur  assez  intense,  un  auditoire  nombreux 
a  tenu  a  venir  acclamer  I'admirable  conduite  du  jeune  et  brave 
Colonel  Long.  De  chaleureuses  applaudissements  temqignent 
du  vif  interet  que  lui  inspiraient  non  seulemeut  toutes  les  peri- 
peties  imposantes  de  ce  voyage  aux  Lacs  Equatoriaux  execute 
dans  des  conditions  vraiment  etonnantes,  mais  aussi  et  surtout 
le  heros  de  I'expedition  lui-naeme  qu'on  etait  heureux  de  voir 
echappe  comme  par  miracle  d'innombrable  perils." 


CHAPTER  XXII. 

Results  of  the  Expedition  to  Ugunda  and  the  Lake  Victoria 
Nyanza — Also  of  the  Expedition  to  the  Makraka  Nlam- 
Niana  Country — Sir  Samuel  Baker  and  the  width  of  the 
River  at  Mrooli — My  opinion  of  the  Negro — Mr.  Stanley 
and  the  conversion  of  M'Tse — The  Slave-Trade  and  the 
Khedive — Seyyid  Burgash  and  Zanzibar — The  opening 
np  of  the  Interior  by  the  Soudan  Railway  and  River  Com- 
munication, the  most  ellectual  means  for  the  regeneration 
of  Central  Africa. 

"  La  verite  seule  est  feconde." — Lamartine. 

It  is  not  necessary  liere  to  explain  why,  nnder 
sucli  untoward  auspices,  the  Expedition  to  the 
Equator  was  undertaken  with  only  two  soldiers, 
as  reference  has  been  made  thereto  in  preceding 
chapters,  to  excuse  me  from  an  act  of  pre- 
meditated folly  or  inexcusable  hardihood,  with 
which  I  might  consistently  be  charged.  It  would 
have  been  considered  madness  had  the  expedi- 
tion failed:  for  it  has  been  well  said  that  "  nothing 
succeeds  like  success." 

I  felt  it  to  be  the  tide  of  life,  that  was  to  be 

Y 


•306  CENTRAL   AFRICA. 

taken  at  its  turn,  and  upon  its  full  sea  I 
cast  mjself,  in  order  that  I  might  not  lose  my 
opportunity. 

It  may  be  well,  in  conclusion,  briefly  to  sum  up 
the  results  obtained  by  the  explorations  to  the 
Lake  Victoria  Nyanza,  and  the  country  Makraka 
Niam-Niam,  expeditions  that  had  their  inception 
and  accomplishment  in  the  space  of  twelve 
months,  with  interval  of  service  on  the  Bahr-el- 
Abiad  and  on  the  Saubat.  Their  cost  to  the 
Government  were  only  in  the  insignificant  presents 
made  to  the  King  and  Sheiks  of  those  regions, 
whilst  valuable  cargoes  of  ivory  were  in  return 
brought  back,  and  placed  to  Government  account. 

The  following  results  were  submitted  in  sub- 
stance to  the  Government  of  Egypt, — 

1.  M'Tse,  King  of  Ugunda,  had  been  visited, 
and  the  proud  African  monarch  made  a  willing 
subject  ;  and  his  country,  rich  in  ivory  and 
populous,  created  the  Southern  limit  of  Egypt. 

2.  The  Lake  Victoria  Nyanza  had  been  par- 
tially explored;  not  thoroughly,  owing  to  my 
helpless  and  almost  dying  condition  at  the  time. 

3.  The  Victoria  River,  leaving  the  Lake  from 
Urondogani  (from  whence  Captain  Speke  had 
been  driven),  had  been  explored,  for  the  first  time, 
as  far  as  Karuma  Falls  ;  thus  for  ever  putting 
at  rest  all  doubts,  and  estabhshing  the  con- 
nexion between  the  Lake  Victoria  and  the  Lake 
Albert.     From  Urondoaani  to  Karuma  Falls  the 


RESULTS   OP   THE   EXPEDITIONS.  307 

river  was  proven  to  be  navigable  by  steamers  of 
tlie  greatest  draught. 

4.  The  discovery,  in  about  Latitude  1°  30' 
North,  of  a  Lake  since  named  "  Ibrahim,"  thus 
adding  another  great  reservoir  to  the  Sources  of 
the  Nile — a  system  of  basins  of  which  the  Lake 
Victoria  and  the  Lake  Albert  were  only  known 
heretofore — the  plateau  southward  acting  as  a 
great  water-shed  to  the  almost  perpetual  equa- 
torial rains. 

5.  The  affair  at  Mrooli — a  desperate  precon- 
certed attack  on  the  part  of  500  savages  upon  two 
frail  barks  containing  three  combatants,  resulting 
in  the  loss  to  the  enemy  mentioned  in  the  general 
orders  already  cited. 

The  results  of  the  Expedition  to  the  Makraka 
Niam-Niam  country  may  be  summed  up  as 
follows  : — 

1.  Communication  had  been  opened  from  the 
Bahr-el-Abiad  "  vi  et  armis " — by  punishment 
given  the  Yanbari  tribe — to  the  Niam-Niam  coun- 
try, rich  in  ivory,  whose  inhabitants  were  friendly 
and  well  disposed  towards  the  Egyptian  Govern- 
ment. 

2.  Occupation  of  that  country  by  the  establish- 
ment of  military  posts,  which  were  to  serve  the 
double  purpose  of  acquiring  ivory  in  exchange  for 
eotton,  cloths,  &c. ;  and  at  the  same  time  incul- 
cating in  the  native  habits  of  industry,  cultivation 
of  the  soil,  the  raising  of  cattle  (the  want  of  which 


308  CENTRAL   AFRICA. 

has  been  the  chief  incentive  to  Anthropophagy) ; 
in  fact,  working  an  amelioration  in  the  state  of 
the  negro,  gocial,  moral,  and  mental. 

3.  Extended  information,  as  to  the  customs, 
fabrics,  &c.,  obtained  of  these  people,  specimens 
of  whom,  in  the  interest  of  ethnography,  were 
brought  to  Cairo,  and  presented  to  the  Govern- 
ment. 

In  paragraph  No.  3,  as  to  results  of  the 
Ugunda  Expedition,  I  have  claimed  to  have 
explored  and  navigated  the  Nile  from  Urondo- 
gani  to  Mrooli  for  the  first  time.  From  Mrooli  it 
will  be  remembered,  however,  that  Captain  Speke 
endeavoured  to  pass  to  Karuma  Falls,  but  was 
compelled  to  abandon  the  attempt  by  the  wily 
agents  of  the  superstitious  Kamrasi;  and  thus 
even  this  part  of  the  river  had  not  been  then 
navigated. 

The  river  at  Mrooli,  as  Sir  Samuel  Baker 
claims,  is  at  least  1000  yards,  and  in  width  forming 
quite  a  little  lake,  a  fact  to  which  I  owe  my  life ; 
for  in  the  attack  made  upon  me  there,  I  kept 
my  barks  in  the  middle  of  the  stream,  and  out 
of  range  of  the  enemy,  who  otherwise  would 
have  attacked  me  successfully  from  each  'bank 
of  the  river. 

One  word  more,  and  the  writer  will  have  closed 
these  notes  of  travel — "  these  naked  truths  of 
naked  people  " — that  are  given  to  the  public, 
whose  interest  has  been  so   deeply  awakened  in 


THE  CHARACTER  OF  THE  NEGRO.       309 

the  mystery  that  has  enshrouded  the  regions  and 
the  people  of  Central  Africa — solely  that  there 
may  be  a  just  appreciation  of  the  true  condition 
of  things ;  "  with  malice  to  none,  and  charity 
to.  all." 

I  have  only  to  repeat  here,  what  T  have  already 
said  in  several  chapters,  as  my  honest  impression 
based  upon  facts,  and  not  upon  fancy: — that  Cen- 
tral Africa  is  no  Paradise,  but  a  plague  spot — and 
that  the  Negro,  the  product  of  this  pestilential 
region,  is  a  miserable  wretch,  often  devoid  of 
all  tradition  or  belief  in  a  Deity,  which  enthu- 
siastic travellers  have  heretofore  endeavoured  to 
endow  him  with.  This  is  the  naked  truth  that  I 
would  present  to  the  reader,  in  contradiction  to 
all  those  clap-trap  paeans  which  are  sung  of 
this  benighted  country.  The  humanitarian  may 
pause  to  consider  the  cost  at  which  he  sends  his 
emissaries,  in  the  laudable  effort  to  humanize 
and  civilize  a  country,  where  nature  has  placed 
a  barrier,  not  alone  in  the  poisoned  arrow  of 
the  savage — but  in  the  more  deadly  poisoned 
air. 

Mr.  Stanley,  who  has  since  visited  M'Tse,  as  re- 
ported in  'the  "  Explorateur,"  in  a  letter  dated  the 
14th  April  of  the  present  year,  says  he  "  se  flatte 
d'avoir  ebranle  passablement  la  foi  du  Monarque 
Noir  au  Mahometisme  "  (flatters  himself  to  have 
shaken  very  sensibly  the  faith  of  the  black  monarch 
in  Mohammedanism). 


310  CENTEAL   AFEIOA. 

If  (as  I  can  scarcely  believe)  such  language 
was  actually  used  by  Mr.  Stanley,  lie  was  either 
the  dupe  of  the  artful  savage,  or  appeals  to  the 
pseudo-philanthropy,  which  in  Europe  elevates 
the  African  at  the  expense  of  truth.  Having 
already  made  one  step  from  Fetichism  to  Moham- 
medanism, the  attempt  to  shake  that  new  faith, 
would  only  cause  him  to  grope  hopelessly  in  a 
confused  labyrinth  of  gods. 

King  M'Tse  had  recently  adopted  the  Mussul- 
man faith  when  I  entered  the  country.  Being  a 
soldier,  not  a  missionary,  I  did  not  attempt  the 
work  of  conversion  on  this  savage :  which  would 
be  utterly  useless,  in  my  opinion. 

His  character  and  conduct  as  I  have  described 
them,  in  my  humble  judgment,  rendered  him  a 
very  unfit  disciple  of  the  meek  and  lowly  Jesus ; 
besides,  I  felt  conscientious  scruples  against  advo- 
cating the  sending  of  missions  into  a  country,  which 
I  believe  would  only  devote  them  to  misery  and  a 
speedy  death,  without  any  results  that  could 
justify  their  inevitable  martyrdom.  Certainly  this 
has  been  the  sequel  of  all  the  attempts  made  by 
those  brave  men  of  the  Austrian  Catholic  Mission, 
under  theApostolicVicar,MonseigneurCamboni,  at 
Khartoum,  who  has  endeavoured  to  plant  Missions 
along  the  Bahr-el-Abiad  and  Khartoum,  with  but 
one  result :  they  all  succumbed  to  the  inevitable 
and.  fatal  fever. 

Egypt  holds  within  her  domains  in  the  region  of 


THE  KHEDIVE  AND  THE  SLAVE  TRADE.    311 

tlie  Upper  Nile  a  hardy  population  of  Nomads, 
especially  fitted  for  the  exploitation  of  these  coun- 
tries. Inured  to  hardships,  these  Nubian  Dongo- 
lowee  have  already  entered  these  countries,  and 
have  been  the  pioneers  of  every  traveller,  except 
Captain  Speke  and  myself,  in  the  explorations  that 
have  from  time  to  time  been  made  there.  Under  a 
proper  regime  of  discipline,  and  the  selection  of 
good  men  that  I  know  among  them,  I  regard  them 
as  the  great  future  civilizing  element  for  the  re- 
demption of  this  country ;  since  the  white  man  and 
the  Arab  cannot  permanently  dwell  in  its  pernicious 
climate. 

When  the  Khedive  first  initiated  the  project  of 
opening  Central  Africa  to  commerce  and  civiliza- 
tion, the  abolition  of  the  Slave-Trade  was  the 
first  point  of  attack ;  as  will  be  seen  in  an  article 
of  the  Firman  issued  to  Sir  Samuel  Baker, 
investing  him  with  power  as  Oovernor -General  of 
these  provinces  in  1869  : — 

"  Considering  that  humanity  enforces  the  sup- 
pression of  the  slave-hunters  who  occupy  these 
countries  in  great  numbers,  an  expedition  is  or- 
ganized to  subdue  to  our  authority  the  countries 
situated  to  the  south  of  Gondokoro,  to  suppress  the 
slave-trade,  to  introduce  a  system  of  commerce," 
&c.,  &c. 

The  "  most  absolute  and  supreme  power,  even 
that  of  death,"  was  conferred  by  this  firman  (as  it 
was  also  given  to  the  successor  of  Sir  Samuel 


312  CENTBAL   AFRICA. 

Baker),  that  lie  migtt  the  more  speedily  and  surely 
suppress  the  slave-trade. 

Ignorant  and  unscrupulous  writers,  anxious  for 
place  in  the  columns  of  the  English  press,  have 
endeavoured  to  call  in  question  the  sincerity  of 
the  Khedive,  in  his  efforts  to  abolish  the  slave- 
trade — an  accusation  that  is  as  puerile,  as  it  is 
without  foundation.  An  expedition  had  been 
formed,  and  committed  to  the  care  of  an 
Englishman,  wliose  strong  feeling  against  slavery 
was  well  known,  and  published  in  his  former 
work. 

To  quote  Sir  Samuel  Baker  on  this  point: — 
"  It  was  thus  the  Khedive  determined,  at  the  risk 
"  of  his  own  popularity  among  his  own  subjects, 
"  to  strike  a  direct  blow  at  the  slave-trade  in  its 
"  distant  nest. 

"  To  insure  the  fulfilment  of  this  difficult  enter- 
"  prise  he  selected  an  Englishman,  armed  withi  a 
"  despotic  power  such  as  had  never  before  been 
"  entrusted  by  a  Mohammedan  to  a  Christian." 

When  this  expedition  had  completed  its  four 
years  of  service  in  those  lands,  with  its  great 
budget  of  expense  and  loss  of  life,  the  Khedive, 
with  a  zeal  and  pertinacity  that  should  have 
awakened  the  most  generous  sympathy,  deter- 
mined that  the  work  should  go  on,  coide  qui  coute  ; 
and  thus  a  successor  was  appointed  to  Sir 
Samuel  Baker  (again  an  Englishman),  doubtless 
under    the    impression   that    Englishmen    alone 


SEYYID   BUKGASH.  313 

had  a  specialty  in  tlie  suppression  of  tlie  slave- 
trade. 

Fresli  from  these  regions,  I  declare  that  the 
result  of  the  simple  establishment  of  the  Govern- 
ment along  the  Bahr-el-Abiad,  south  to  the 
Equator,  and  westward  of  the  Nile,  both  in  the 
Niam-Niam  country  and  Darfour,  has  struck  a 
vital  blow  to  slavery  and  the  slave-trade;  for  in 
every  camp  and  garrison  a  fugitive  slave  may  seek 
protection  and  freedom,  by  simply  declaring  that 
he  "  Owse  Meri ! "  literally,  wants  protection  of 
the  Government.  It  has  been  already  shown  that 
this  has  become  a  serious  burden  to  the  Egyptian 
Government ;  since  freedom  is  interpreted  by  the 
negro  as  a  licence  to  laziness.  This  protection, 
however,  may  not  be  denied  by  any  Post  Com- 
mander, save  at  the  cost  of  severe  punishment  to 
the  recusant. 

On  the  East  Coast  of  Africa,  in  or  near  Zanzi- 
bar, from  my  own  personal  observation,  there  is 
no  such  refuge  for  the  negro ;  for  the  slave-trade 
flourishes  on  shore  under  the  very  guns  of  the 
British  man-of-war,  sent  there  on  a  special  mis- 
sion to  suppress  it.  Seyyid  Burgash,  it  is  said, 
has  promised  to  abolish  slavery  in  his  dominions, 
and  has  issued  "J.  Proclamation^^  to  that  effect. 
Mere  clap -trap !  The  truth  is,  that  the  au- 
thority of  Seyyid  Burgash,  except  in  Zanzibar 
and  one  or  two  stations  north  in  close  proximity, 
has  no  other  existence  than  in  the  brain  of  some 


314  CENTRAL    AFKICA. 

of  his  Missionary  friends  and  agents  in  London. 
The  soldiers  of  Burgash  are  simple  "  squatters " 
along  the  bleak  sterile  coast  north  of  the  Equator. 
His  weak  and  effeminate  soldiery  are  permitted 
to  stay  by  the  sufferance  of  the  proud  Soumali 
natives,  simply  because  these  soldiers  are  slave- 
traders,  and  placed  there  for  this  purpose.  They 
make  no  pretension  to  government,  nor  do  they 
levy  tribute ;  and  the  Soumali,  did  he  not  sell 
them  his  slaves,  or  use  them  as  supercargoes,  he 
would  soon  drive  them  from  the  coast. 

The  Proclamation  of  the  "  Sultan  of  Zan- 
zibar "  is  merely  "  a  Pope's  Bull  against  the 
comet,"  as  Mr.  Lincoln  used  to  say. 

In  conclusion,  the  Soudan  Railway  which  is  fast 
making  its  way  across  the  desert,  from  Wadai- 
Halfai  to  Shendy, — from  whence  by  steamer  com- 
munication to  Khartoum  is  had, — will  make  the 
latter  place  the  front  door  of  Central  Africa,  the 
radiating  point  of  civilization,  through  trade  and 
commerce  that  will  eventually  be  established  with 
the  Equatorial  Provinces — Darfour,  Kordofan,  and 
Sennaar,  rich  in  ivory,  gold  and  copper  mines, 
gums,  and  ostrich  feathers,  &c. 

I  repeat  that  Egypt  alone  has  within  her 
domain  a  population  especially  fit  for  the  perilous 
service  of  exploration  of  these  countries ;  and  it 
is  to  this  element,  rather  than  to  costly  foreign 
expeditions,  whose  sacrifice  of  life  and  of  money 
are  greatly  in  disproportion  to  results  obtained. 


CONCLUSION.  315 

that  recourse  must  be  liad  by  the  Ruler  of  Egypt, 
by  the  philanthropist,  and  by  the  trader.  It" 
Providence  has  ordained  that  the  regeneration  of 
Central  Africa  is  to  be  wrought  by  human  means, 
it  is  thus,  and  thus  only,  it  ever  can  be 
accomplished. 


POSTSCRIPT. 

Fate  liad  decreed  that  the  insignificant  little 
band  of  explorers,  whose  deeds  have  been  detailed 
in  these  Chapters,  should  count  for  something  in 
the  discovery  of  the  Sources  of  the  Nile.  In  that 
connexion,  as  well  as  to  render  a  just  tribute  to 
my  former  chief.  Colonel  Gordon,  whom  I  quitted 
to  continue  still  the  service  of  the  Equatorial 
Provinces,  namely,  the  opening  of  a  direct  road  to 
connect  the  Lake  Victoria  with  the  Indian  Ocean' — 
I  may  be  permitted  to  quote  here  the  text  of  an 
official  note  communicated  recently  by  his  Ex- 
cellency Cherif  Pacha,  the  enlightened  Minister 
of  Foreign  Affairs  of  his  Highness  the  Khedive, 
to  the  Consuls-General  of  the  foreign  Powers 
in  Egypt,  containing  a  resume  of  latest  news 
received  of  the  expedition  of  Gordon  Pacha,  and 
at  the  same  time  affirming  the  annexation  of  terri- 
tories in  and  around  the  Equatorial  Nile  basin  : — 
"  D'apres  les  dernieres  nouvelles  parvenues  au 
Caire,    Gordon   Pacha   a   definitivement   penetre 

'  See  Appendix. 


POSTSCRIPT.  31 7 

dans  le  district  de  Mrooli,  sur  les  bords  du  fleuve 
Somerset  (oil,  comme  on  le  sait,  le  Colonel  Long 
a  essuye  au  mois  de  Septembre,  1874,  I'attaque 
a  laquelle  il  a  si  courageusement  resiste).  Une 
station  a  ete  etablie  a  Masindi,  capitale  de 
rUnyoro. 

"  Le  roi  de  ce  pays,  Keba  Rega,  qui  s'etait  tou- 
jours  montre  hostile  a  rEgypte,a  du  prendre  la  fuite. 

"  Aufina,  son  competiteur,  anime,  au  contraire, 
des  meilleurs  sentiments,  a  ete  appele  a  lui  succeder 
comme  representant  du  gouvernement  du  Khedive. 

"  Les  populations  sont  soumises  et  tranquilles. 
Gordon  Pacha  a  envoye  sous  les  ordres  de  Nour 
Agha,  officier  sur  et  connaissant  le  pays,  les 
troupes  necessaires  pour  former  un  poste  militaire 
a  Urondogani  et  un  autre  sur  les  bords  du  Lac 
Victoria,  pres  des  chutes  de  Ripon.  D'apres  les 
dernieres  nouvelles,  il  a  occupe  la  position  de 
Magungo  sur  les  bords  du  Lac  Albert,  vers  I'em- 
bouchure  du  fleuve  Somerset  et  mis  en  communi- 
cation Magungo  avec  Dufle,  station  sur  le  Nil 
Blanc,  en  amont  de  1' embouchure  du  fleuve  Asua, 
oil  sont  arrives  les  bateaux  en  fer  avec  un  bateau 
a  vapeur. 

"  Ainsi  est  accomplie  I'annexion  a  I'Egypte  de 
tous  les  territoires  sis  autour  des  grands  lacs  Vic- 
toria et  Albert  qui,  avec  leurs  affluents  et  le  fleuve 
Somerset,  ouvrent  a  la  navigation  un  vaste  champ 
d' explorations  que  Gordon  Pacha  prepare  jusqu'a 
present. 


318  POSTSCRIPT. 

"  JSfous  somraes  hcureux  d'avoir  a  annoncer  le 
resultat  de  cette  expedition  qui  a  reussi,  grace  a 
I'initiative  intelligente,  a  I'energie  et  au  devoue- 
ment  de  ceux  qui  I'ont  entreprise  sous  la  direction 
de  Gordon  Pacha,  dans  la  genereuse  pensee  de 
concourir  au  but  que  s'est  propose  le  Khedive, 
celui  de  feconder  ces  contrees  par  la  civilisation, 
par  r agriculture  et  par  le  commerce. 

"  Oe  but  sera  complete ment  atteint  avec  le 
temps  et  a  I'aide  d'une  administration  serieuse- 
raent  organisee,  premiere  base  du  succes.  Apres 
avoir  pose  cette  premiere  assise,  le  gouvernement 
du  Khedive  ne  negligera  aucun  des  moyens  propres 
a  assurer  et  en  memo  temps  a  hater  autant  que 
possible  le  resultat  progressif  qu'il  poursuit. 

"  Gordon  Pacha  exprime  I'espoir  que  dans  un 
ou  deux  ans  les  communications  entre  les  diverses 
stations  seront  assez  sures  pour  permettre  aux 
trafiquants  et  aux  voyageurs  de  circuler  avec  la 
plus  entiere  securite  dans  le  pays."' 

Still  later  information,  conveyed  through  Major 
General   Sir  Henry   Rawlinson,    dated  April  29, 

^According  to  the  latest  iutelligence  received  in  Cairo, 
Colonel  Gordon  has  penetrated  as  far  as  the  banks  of  the  river 
Somerset,  in  the  district  of  Mrooli.  A  station  has  been  esta- 
blished at  Masindi,  the  capital  of  Unyoro,  the  king  of  which 
country,  Keba  Rega,  who  had  invariably  shown  himself  hostile 
to  the  Egyptians,  has  been  obliged  to  seek  safety  in  flight. 
Aufina,  the  rival  of  Keba  Rega,  has  been  called  to  succeed 
him  as  representative  of  the  Egyptian  Government:  Rionga, 
who  had  been  expelled  by  Keba  Rega,  and  who,  for  many 
years  past,  had  sought   the  protection  of  Egypt,  had  been  re- 


POSTSCEIPT.  319 

1876,  to  the  E,ojal  Geographical  Society  of 
London,  speaks  of  a  telegram  from  General 
Gordon  Pacha,  in  which  he  states  as  follows  : — 

"  On  the  8th  of  March  Mr.  Gessi  left  Dufle 
with  the  two  iron  lifeboats  and  the  steamboat, 
the  *  Khedive,'  with  their  crews,  numbering  twenty- 
two  officers  and  men,  with  their  arms,  ammuni- 
tion, &c. ;  carrying  also  certain  other  supplies. 

"  They  went  to  Magungo,  to  make  the  recon- 
naissances already  indicated  to  his  Highness  as  to 
be  made. 

•'  They  arrived  at  Magungo  (which  is  indicated 
on  the  map  of  Baker  Pacha)  on  the  31st  of  March. 

established  at  Mrooli  in  a  capacity  similar  to  that  of  Aufiiia 
at  Uuyoro.  The  surrounding  native  population  is  repre- 
sented to  be  quiet  and  submissive.  Colonel  Gordon  has  de- 
spatched a  body  of  troops,  under  the  orders  of  Nour  Agha,  a 
trustworthy  officer,  well  acquainted  with  the  country,  with  the 
design  of  establishing  two  military  posts,  the  one  at  Urondo- 
gani,  and  the  other  at  the  borders  of  Lake  Victoria,  near  the 
Kipon  Falls.  He  has  occupied  the  position  of  Magungo,  on  the 
banks  of  Lake  Albert,  near  the  mouth  of  the  Somerset  river, 
and  establTshed  communications  between  Magungo  and  Dufle, 
a  station  on  the  White  Nile,  near  the  mouth  of  the  river  Asua, 
where  the  iron  vessels  and  a  steamboat  have  arrived.  In 
this  manner  all  the  territories  surrounding  the  Victoria  and 
Albert  Lakes  have  been  annexed  to  Egypt,  these  lakes,  with 
their  confluents  and  the  river  Somerset,  opening  to  Colonel 
Gordon  a  vast  field,  which  he  is  understood  to  be  about  to 
explore* with  as  little  delay  as  possible.  Lastly,  he  is  said  to 
have  expressed  the  hope  that  within  a  year  or  two  from  the 
present  time  the  means  of  communication  between  the  different 
stations  which  he  has  established  will  be  sufficiently  secure  to 
allow  both  merchants  and  travellers  to  traverse  the  country  in 
perfect  safety. 


320  POSTSCRIPT. 

There  tliey  missed  tlie  way,  and  returned  to  the 
island  of  Fori,  known  as  the  Cataracts  of  Aufina, 
where  they  were  met  by  Mohammed  Aga-Wat-el- 
Mek,  accompanied  by  several  officers  and  soldiers, 
and  the  Chief  AuJfina.  After  the  proper  cere- 
monies of  reception  were  over,  they  raised  and 
saluted  the  flag  of  the  Government. 

"  After  several  days  of  rest,  they  left  and 
went  to  Magungo,  where  they  arrived  on  the  12th 
of  April ;  and  on  the  same  day  they  hoisted  the 
flag  there,  on  the  banks  of  Lake  Albert,  in  the 
presence  of  the  officers,  soldiers,  and  natives,  and 
all  the  assemblage  prayed  for  long  life  and  con- 
tinued victory  for  his  Highness  the  Khedive,  and 
the  Princes,  his  sons ;  and  all  those  regions  and 
their  inhabitants  came  under  the  rule  of  the 
Khedival  Government. 

"  Mr.  Gessi  left  Magungo  on  the  15th  of  April, 
with  the  two  iron  boats,  to  explore  Lake  Albert, 
and  did  not  stop  until  he  reached  its  extremity. 
On  the  19th  of  April  he  was  able  to  state'that  the 
lake  is  140  miles  long,  with  a  width  of  50  miles  ; 
but  he  was  not  able  to  make  the  entire  circuit  of 
the  shore.  He  states  that  the  lake  is  bounded 
on  the  south  by  great  trees  (forests  ?),  and  that  in 
that  portion  the  water  is  only  leg -deep ;  that  it  is 
bounded  on  the  west  by  high  mountains  and  great 
forests,  so  that  passage  there  was  impossible. 

" '  On  the  east  there  is  a  river  which  empties 
into  the  lake,  but  the  forests  form  an  obstacle  to 


POSTSCRIPT.  *  321 

it's  ascension,  and  the  current  is  so  strong  that  it 
could  not  be  navigated  without  great  danger. 

"  I  have  no  news  of  Stanley,  and  can  only 
suppose  that  he  passed  from  Lake  Victoria  to  the 
west,  saw  the  south  end  of  Lake  Albert,  and  then 
went  on  to,  perhaps,  the  nest  of  lakes  I  suppose 
exist  south  of  Lake  Albert. 

"  A  very  curious  feature  presents  itself  in  the 
split  which  the  Nile  makes  soon  after  leaving  Lake 
Albert.  It  divides  into  two  branches,  one  of  which 
goes  north  to  Dufle  and  this  place ;  the  other  goes 
north-west,  is  200  yards  wide,  and  has  a  strong 
current.  If  you  have  Manuel's  maps,  look  down 
28°  E.  long.,  and  you  will  see  west  of  Gondokoro 
a  '  Hiver  Jaie,'^  on  '  Bahr  D'jemit'  marked  on  it, 
coming  from  near  the  Lake.  Now  we  know  that 
fi'om  '  Lake  Djak'  (Manuel's  map)  a  stream  enters 
the  Nile  (near  the  point  where  Bahr  Zaraff  leaves 
it),  that  this  stream  is  deep  during  rains,  and  is 
navigable  to  Eliab.  We  believe  that  the  same 
stream  runs  past  Makuka,  and  I  think  the  north- 
west branch  of  the  Nile,  above  spoken  of,  is  that 
stream,  as  Manuel's  map  would  imply  that  it  is, 
and  if  so,  we,  here  at  Kerri,  are  on  an  isle  of  the 
Nile.  The  levels  of  the  River  Welle,  2707  ft.,  and 
Lake  Albert,  2740  ft.,  allow  of  its  going  to  Munza's, 
but  I  do  not  think  it  possible.  Speke,  from  native 
report,  put  Lake  Albert  in  nearly  the  same  position 
and  about  the  same  size  as  Gessi  found  it;  look  at 

*  The  Rive*-  Yeh  (?),  see  page  258. 
Z 


322  *  POSTSCRIPT. 

the  map  of  Speke  ('  Backwater  of  Nile/  Luta 
Nzige).  Gessi  had,  and  so  have  I  had,  great  help 
from  Baker's  map.  Murchison  Fall  is  twenty- two 
miles  from  the  entrance  into  the  lake." — Letter  of 
Gordon  Pacha,  April  29,  1876. 

I  am  certainly  puzzled  to  read  that  a  river 
empties  into  the  Lake  Albert  "  on  the  east,  with 
a  current  so  strong  that  it  could  not  be  navigated;" 
no  such  river  was  encountered  either  by  myself  or 
Linant  in  going  southward,  the  road  being  only — 
by  native  intelligence  as  well  as  through  Sir 
Hamuel  Baker,  to  whom  the  honour  belongs  of  the 
(liscovery  of  the  Lake  Albert — "  three  days  dis- 
tant from  Mrooli;"  it  may  be  possible,  however, 
that  the  telegram  has  said  "  east"  instead  of  ivest, 
or  it  may  be  the  short  river  Kitchiri,  or  a  similar 
stream  finding  its  force  in  some  mountain  descent. 
In  any  event  particulars  will  soon  be  given  that 
will  add  this  very  important  navigation  of  the 
lake  to  the  work  accomplished  by  the  Governor 
General  of  the  Equatorial  Provinces,  work  in 
which  the  Khedive  has  been  untiring  in  energy  as 
he  has  been  generous  in  the  means  afforded  for  its 
accomplishment. 

It  is  with  pleasure,  alloyed  with  pain  at  his  sad 
fate,  that  I  refer  to  my  friend,  M,  Ernest  Linant, 
mentioned  before  in  these  pages,  the  son  of  that 
great  French  Engineer,  M.  Linant  de  Bellefonds, 
whose  name  is  written  in  the  great  irrigational 
works  that  have  marked  progress  in  Egypt  since 


^    POSTSCRIPT.  323 

the  days  of  tlie  great  Mehemet  Ali.  M.  Ernest 
Linant  liad  left  Cairo  to  visit  his  brother  Auguste, 
of  whom  I  have  also  spoken.  I  met  Ernest  for 
the  last  time  at  the  junction  of  the  Saubat  with 
the  Bahr-el-Abiad,  in  company  with  Messrs. 
Watson  and  Chippendall  en  route  southward, 
whilst  I  was  hurrying  down  the  Nile  to  Khartoum, 
having  but  just  returned  from  the  Expedition  to 
Ugunda. 

In  the  month  of  December  of  the  following 
year,  when  in  command  of  the  land  forces  under 
H.  E.  McKillop  Pacha,  of  the  Royal  Navy,  and 
Admiral  in  the  service  of  his  Highness  the 
Khedive,  on  the  banks  of  the  river  Juba,  on  the 
Indian  Ocean,  I  received  news  of  the  massacre  of 
poor  Linant  and  thirty- six  of  his  men  of  the 
same  valiant  "  Forty  Thieves "  that  had  accom- 
panied him  to  M'Tse. 

It  seems  that  he  had  followed  my  route  to 
Ugunda,  where  he  had  arrived  in  the  month  of 
April,  1875  ;  he  had  been  well  received  by  M'Tse, 
and  when  ushered  into  his  presence  had  the 
pleasure  of  meeting  with  Mr.  Stanley,  the  now 
famous  traveller,  who  in  coming  from  Zanzibar 
had  circumnavigated  the  Lake  Victoria  Nyanza.^ 

^  Mr.  Stanley,  ere  he  quitted  M.  Linant,  entrnsted  to  him 
letters  and  a  sketch  Map  of  the  lake,  which— save  with  some 
minor  differences — confirms  the  accuracy  of  the  dimensions  of 
the  lake  as  conjectured  by  Captain  Speke.  Although  the 
first  to   navigate  the   lake,  my  enfeebled  condition,  and  having 


324  POSTSCRIPT. 

Linant,  after  spending  several  days  with 
Stanley,  turned  Ms  face  northward,  and  retraced 
his  route  towards  Gondokoro  or  Bedden,  now 
become  the  head-quarters  of  Gordon  Pacha. 
Stanley-  turned  to  pursue  his  explorations — in 
what  direction  is  not  clear — but  the  long  interval 
that  has  passed  would  seem  to  indicate  that  he 
had  gone  westward  to  the  Atlantic.  This  con- 
clusion amounts  almost  to  a  certainty  since  the 
recent  exploration  of  the  Lake  Albert  by  Mr.  Gessi 
says  nothing  of  Mr.  Stanley. 

To  return  to  Linant,  he  passed  in  safety  over  the 
return  route  ;  and  was  attacked  by  the  same  tribe 
that  had  attacked  me  in  1874.  In  his  own  eloquent 
way  he  described  his  visit  to  M'Tse,  his  Itinerary 
embodied  many  incidents  related  by  me,  and  it  was 
with  a  mournful  pleasure  that  Ipassedthusinreview 
the  scenes  of  misery  to  which  my  poor  little  troupe 
had  been  doubly  devoted,  save  with  here  and  there 
an  occasional  enthusiastic  sentiment  expressed  of 
a  spot  that  presented  less  of  misery  in  nature  and 
in  man.  There  was  the  same  record  of  marches 
through  bog  and  morass,  through  pestilence  and 
fever,  and  the  same  struggle  with  the  treachery 
and  hypocrisy  of  the  negro.  He  mentioned  a  lonely 

only  two  soldiers,  rendered  me  unable  to  brave  the  opposition 
of  the  1200  escort  of  M'Tse's  navy,  and  was  therefore 
obliged  to  turn  my  back  upon  the  lake  with  the  impression 
that  the  numerous  islands  seen  (and  reported  by  Stanley)  were 
a  coast-line,  and,  thus  deceived,  causing  me  to  report  the  lake 
as  only  fifteen  to  twenty  miles  wide. 


POSTSCRIPT. 


325 


spot  in  tlie  Kidi  Wilderness,  between  the  Post 
Fatiko  and  Foueira,  where  on  a  dark  and  gloomy 
day,  in  the  month  of  May  of  the  preceding  year,  I 
had  stopped  beneath  a  tree  for  protection  from  the 
howling  storm;  here  he  says,"  J'aivulenom  demon 
ami  Long  ! "    Cut  deep  in  the  bark  was  "  Long  74." 

If,  as  has  been  said,  and  I  most  ardently 
desire  that  it  may  prove  to  be  so,  that  M'Tse 
has  been  converted  to  Christianity,  and  that  he 
no  longer  considers  human  sacrifices  an  attribute 
of  greatness,  it  seems  difficult  to  reconcile  this 
conversion  with  an  act  which  M.  Linant  cites  in 
his  report ;  that  a  few  days  prior  to  his  depar- 
ture, and  consequently  after  the  departure  of  Mr. 
Stanley,  M'Tse,  boastful  of  his  accuracy  of  aim, 
"  levelled  his  gun  deliberately  at  one  of  his  female 
attendants,  and  blew  her  brains  out." 

Linant  returned  then  to  the  station  at  Bedden. 
It  was  here  three  days  afterwards  that  he  crossed 
the  river,  and  in  full  view  of  the  camp  was  mas- 
sacred with  thirty-six  soldiers,  as  already  stated. 
It  may  not  be  mal  a  propos  to  add  here,  for  the 
benefit  of  those  who  claim  that  this  race  may  be 
civilized  by  moral  suasion,  that  the  dupHcity  and 
treachery  of  the  negro,  evidence  of  which  may  be 
gathered  from  the  honest  opinion  of  all  travellers, 
render  a  confidence  in  his  probity  by  weak  and 
inoffensive  parties  not  only  wrong  but  almost 
criminal,  since  it  becomes  an  incentive  to  the 
black   to    exhibit   that  nature  which  Sir  Samuel 


326  POSTSCRIPT. 

Baker  has  attributed  to  him,  in  the  assertion  that 
he  does  right  only  when  he  has  not  the  power  to 
do  wrong — a  perfectly  legitimate  savage  instinct, 
that  oft-repeated  massacres  attest. 


The  question  of  the  Nile  Sources  is  now  no 
longer  one  of  "  Caput  Nili  quserere" — the  problem 
of  remote  ages  has  been-finally  solved.  The  Lakes 
Victoria,  Ibrahim,  and  Albert,  acting  as  great 
basins  of  the  Equatorial  water-shed,  and  fed  by 
perpetual  Equatorial  rains,  constitute  with  their 
affluents  the  Sources  of  the  Nile. 

One  other  problem  that  may  await  the  exploita- 
tion of  the  countries  discovered  engages  the 
attention  of  the  Geographical  world — the  relation 
with  these  lake  basins  of  that  great  affluent  of  the 
Bahr-el-Abiad,  the  river  Saubat. 


APPENDIX. 

NOTE. 

ScARCELT  had  I  finished  the  course  of  medical  treatment  pre- 
scribed me  at  Plombieres  dans  les  Vosges,  when  I  received  a 
summons  to  return  to  Egypt.  On  the  2nd  of  September, 
obliged  to  sacrifice  to  a  military  exigence  my  intention  of 
visiting  America,  where  my  aged  and  honoured  father  and 
family  reside,  I  left  Paris  via  Marseilles,  arriving  in  Egypt 
the  9th  of  the  same  month.  On  the  16th  I  left  Cairo  in  a 
special  train  for  Suez,  there  to  take  command  of  a  battalion  of 
soldiers  of  all  arms.  Our  objective  point  was  the  Oriental  Coast 
of  Africa  in  the  Indian  Ocean ;  the  purpose,  a  scientific  and 
commercial  Expedition,  to  cut  an  Equatorial  Road  to  the  Lake 
Victoria,  and  open  up  those  countries  to  commerce  and  civili- 
zation by  a  short  and  direct  route.  With  the  force  at  our 
command  its  accomplishment  seemed  easy.  The  chief  com- 
mand of  the  expedition  had  been  confided  to  H.  E.  McKillop 
Pacha,  a  distinguished  officer  of  H.B.M.  Navy,  now  in  the 
Egyptian  Service. 

The  expedition,  however,  was  recalled,  before  its  legitimate 
object  had  been  accomplished.  The  river  Juba,  15'  south  of 
the  Equator,  had,  until  this  moment,  been  unexplored.  Von 
der  Decken,  ten  years  before,  had  made  the  attempt,  but  was 
treacherously  massacred  with  his  boat's  crew  by  the  savages  ; 
and  the  river  was  left  thus  still  unknown  to  geographers.* 
Taking  with   me  a   detachment  of  twenty-five  men   and  two 

'  The  Author  is  mistaken  in  this  statement : — Von  der  Decken  ascended 
the  Juba  in  a  steamer  as  far  as  Barderah,  ahout  350  miles  as  the  river 
winds,  or  175  miles  in  geographical  distance. — E.  M. 


328  APPENDIX. 

rocket-pieces,  I  ascended  the  Juba  for  a  distance  of  150  miles  in 
a  steam  launch  that,  with  difficulty,  had  been  carried  over  the 
dangerous  surf  which  makes  the  mouth  of  the  river  nearly 
impassable. 

I  am  not  inclined  to  believe  with  Sir  Samuel  Baker  "  that 
the  river  called  Jooba,  in  the  Lobbohr  country,  east  of  Fatiko, 
is  the  Juba  that  flows  into  the  Indian  Ocean," 

I  ascended  the  river  far  enough  to  perceive  its  frequent 
discolorations  tinging  the  water  red,  that  certainly  showed  its 
mountain  origin,  and,  from  the  report  of  those  who  had  been  to 
its  source,  I  do  not  think  that  his  supposition  is  well  founded. 

This  exploration,  with  the  study  of  the  tribes  and  their 
relations  of  language  and  customs,  with  the  races  that  inhabit 
Central  Africa,  will  be  made  the  subject  of  subsequent  "Notes 
of  Travel  and  Exploration  of  tJtie  river  Juba." 


VOCABULARY   OF   WORDS    SELECTED    FROM   LANGUAGES 
SPOKEN  BY  TRIBES  IN   CENTRAL  AFRICA. 


Ugunda. 

Monbutto. 

Niam  Niam. 

Muro. 

Abaker. 

Kiy^h. 

Mundo. 

Salutation 

Otiano  and 

Yanzig-Yanzig 

Ingassy  1 

Moyiehkoro 

Mu'to'tah 

Agi 

Mabayi^h 

Angiora 
andikonya 

Morning 

Kakati 

Nebi  libou 

Iso 

Titou 

Kalondo 

Abutiss^ 

Ear 

Night 

Kero 

Nekini 

Ges86 

Kerba 

Odrou 

Bibiti 

Sun 

M  Sana 

Neiko 

Oola 

Outou 

Kardo 

Adra 

Rar 

Moon 

Mouesi 

Nangare 

Tiwi 

Imbar 

Aff^ 

Omba 

Rha 

Star 

Muiyeny^ 

Etton  loa 

Torgo 

Mini-Mini 

Kebl 

Aurassola 

GoMra 

Heavens 

Lubali 

Manga 

Bon 

Aerr^ 

Iton 

Phi 

Earth 

Taka 

Napp^ 

Sanda 

Yuini 

Cou 

Obrae 

Tou 

Forest 

Mitti 

Tonoor 

TJngonah 

Kagah 

Och6 

Rho 

House 

Miyou 

Egnoke 

Dimo 

Ditch^ 

Ba! 

Cambo 

Wood 

Nukou 

Nagama 

Tuakd 

Ghir 

Natafa 

Rho-or-():e 

Iron 

Kyiima 

Nobila 

Binga 

Manbillo 

Gufa 

Ci^ 

Copper 

Nngaga 

Natala 

Talah 

Godo  to  mo 

Attala 

Ija  Combe 

Cloth 

Lubongo 

Nehlouma 

Bftngo  Lo- 

Koddo 

Bongo 

Bongo 

Eye 

Liso 

Nengo 

Zoga  or 

Mi 

Komo 

Mi 

Gigah 

Ear 

Mattou 

Nebbee 

lu^  Bonga- 

lissa. 
Lili 

Pa 

Bil6 

Bi 

Gegah 

Head 

M'tu^ 

NMona 

Bi 

DoU 

Dri 

Jungo 

Nose 

Nindo 

Namo 

Ossi 

Nmpho 

Sommo 

Nmpha 

Gogo 

Forehead 

Kenyil 

Napimba 

Popoli 

Millitti 

Som  de 

Undrogalli 

Pobarah 

Mouth 

M'momuah 

Natikwa 

Papouce 

Tila 

Tola°™° 

Toila 

Kokom 

Teeth 

M'nyo 

Ekki 

Linda 

Si 

Shwiga 

Si 

Tatah 

Tongue 

Lima 

Nakkrada 

Nubah 

Ladra 

Adra 

Mimi 

Moustaches 

Birefo 

Endelo 

Bi 

Tibili 

Chiagah 

Arm 

M'Kono 

M  Takwa 

Bey 

Dri 

Schili 

Drago 

Papa 

Hand 

Nugaro 

Ett6 

Nliza 

Nuga 

Doago 

Gi-gi-pa 

Chin 

Kalefo 

Naki-ki 

Ohin-balli 

Bongo 

Nugoko 

Ditrhoboli 

Sa-mimi 

Leg 

KoriROulo 

Neddo 

Ondolah 

Pii 

Sliindi 

Pou 

Lulu 

Foot 

Tigi  ri 

Apuendri 

Pendolah 

Shindi 

Pompey 

Gigilu 

Thigh 

Chin  gas 

galli 
Mitombr^ 

Etoppi 

Calf  of  the 

Leg 

Listen 

Agumb^ 

Water 

Mezi 

Agua 

Ivory- 

Nekok6 

Man 

M'saga 

Agogo 

Ago 

Addo 

Ago 

Commoko 

Woman 

M'kabsi 

Namass^ 

Akoi 

Kar 

Oko 

Worsah 

Girl 

M'nara 

Kira 

Kouss^ 

Worsha 

Boy 

Kelensi 

Aliko 

Ao 

Adoupi 

Imbassah 

Child 

Katto 

Nebatabou 

Schillou 

Infarmare 

Impar- 
sepero 

Father 

Ejtta  oii 

Papa 

Adoupi 

Baba 

Attar 

Nyeu 

Mother 

Toko 

li 

Ma  Ma 

Andromari 

Worsa 

Brother 

M'Konto6 
wo 

Aowrogua 

Lundaina 

Adroupe 

Augonani 
Au-ga-nani 

Sister 

Barimgoe 

Nnopi 

Lima 

-worsa 

Fish 

sega 
Tukag^ 

Nada 

Tio 

Kang^ 

Ap6 

Si' 

Beef 

Akaba 

Noko 

llti 

1>^cqo 

Mima 

Mon^fjo 

Mansu 

330 


APPENDIX. 


Ugunda. 

Monbutto. 

Niam  Niam. 

Muro. 

Abaker. 

Kiy^h. 

Mundo. 

Cow- 

Mitt^ 

Nirrh 

Nito 

Iti 

Iti 

Iti 

Iti 

Goat 

Imbos^ 

Mimi 

Wossonda 

Indi 

Ina 

Inr^ 

Mimi 

Dog 

Umbois 

Nessi 

An  go 

Ocho 

Ich 

Ojekko 

Boro 

Cat 

Ki'ya'yo 

Nessengina 

Dandarah 

loro 

AUabonga 

L6ko-k6 

Zarzas 

Rat 

Missi 

Naipi 

Okoli 

Idra 

Chigak 

Orago 

i^ou 

Lion 

Ingafo  « 

iliaii 

Kojinero 

in 

Kami 

Kami 

Leopard 

Braga-ma 

Kakundo 

Zaya 

Leyboyiah 

Ker 

Kalagi 

Cire 

Banana 

M'Tokg 

Abira 

Sultan 

M.  Yane 

Neba 

Monkey 

Inkobi 

N(5'koko 

Good 

Kurungiur 

Banombi 

Bad 

Kobi 

Tei  Eme- 
gunda 

res 

Ah 

EE.  EE. 

No 

ah 

Muh 

1 

Mo 

Koma 

Sa 

Kill 

Beringo 

% 

Beri 

Soewi 

oa 

Bor^ 

Bossu 

3 

Sutlo 

Sutta 

Bita 

Dotla 

Batla 

4 

N'ya 

Sosona 

Biana 

Ashtj 

Balla 

5 

Tano 

Tosorani 

Biswa 

Ini 

Aboufi. 

6 

M'Kago 

Tangue 

kami 
Bandah 

Bedioa 

Im  kili 

Mudia 

7 

M'Saufo 

Bitaonl 

Im-bon6 

Bagina 

8 

M'Nano 

Tongolo- 
Gika 

Kibeto 

Ini-dotta 

Liri 

9 

M'Nanda 

Tonnon 

Debiano 

Tin  Ash6 

Mannoa 

10 

Komi 

Takani 

Bawa 

Cliika 

Nujorquoi 

li 

Komi-wo 

Bawa  ba 
sin  sa 

OMkaKilli 

Nujor  quoi 
Beringo 

20 

™Komi- 
Beri 

Bawa  ba 
sin  ow 

Chi  KeU 

Tiki  B^re 

30 

■"Komi 
Sutlo 

Gibil  Bour6 

Chi  otta 

Tiki  Eire 
Nujorquoi 

40 

■"KomiNya 

Diana-oi€ 

Chi  bon6 

Tiki  Borsa 

50 

™Komi 
Sano 

Chiln6 

Tike  Borsa 

Nujorquoi 

60 

"Komi 
Kago 

Chi 

70 

■"Komi 
Saufo 

80 

™Komi 
Nano 

90 

™Komi 
Nanda 

100 

Bi  Komi 

Biri 

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DRAPER'S  AMERICAN  CIVIL  POLICY.  Thoughts  on  the  Future  Civil  Policy 
of  America.  By  John  W.  Draper,  M.D.,  LL.D.,  Professor  of  Chemistry  and 
Physiology  in  the  University  of  New  York.     Crown  Svo,  Cloth,  $2  00. 

DRAPER'S  CIVIL  WAR.  History  of  the  American  Civil  War.  Bv  John  W. 
Draper,  M.D.,  LL.D.  3  vols.,  Svo,  Cloth,  Beveled  Edges,  $10  50;  Sheep, 
$12  00;  Half  Calf,  $17  25. 

DRAPER'S  INTELLECTUAL  DEVELOPMENT  OF  EUROPE.  A  History  of 
the  Intellectual  Development  of  Europe.  By  John  W.  Draper,  M.D.,  LL.D. 
New  Edition,  Revised.    2  vols.,  12mo,  Cloth,  $3  00. 

DU  CHAILLU'S  AFRICA.  Explorations  and  Adventures  in  Equatorial  Africa; 
with  Accounts  of  the  Manners  and  Customs  of  the  People,  and  of  the  Chase 
of  the  Gorilla,  the  Crocodile,  Leopard,  Elephant,  Hippopotamus,  and  other 
Animals.    By  Paul  B.  Du  Chaillc.    Illustrated.    Svo,  Cloth,  $5  00. 

DU  CHAILLU'S  ASHANGO  LAND.  A  Journey  to  Ashango  Land :  and  Further 
Penetration  into  Equatorial  Africa.  By  Paul  B.  Du  Cuaillu.  Illustrated. 
Svo,  Cloth,  $5  00. 

FLAMMARION'S  ATMOSPHERE.  The  Atmosphere.  Translated  from  the 
French  of  Camii.lf.  Flammarion.  Edited  by  Jamks  Glaishkr,  F.R.S. ,  Su- 
perintendent of  the  Magiietical  and  Meteorolosrical  Department  of  the  Royal 
Observatory  at  Greenwich.  With  10  Chromo-Lithographs  and  86  Woodcuts. 
Svo,  Cloth,  16  00. 


Valuable  and  Interesting  Works  for  Public  and  Private  Libraries.      3 

FIRST  CENTURY  OF  THE  REPUBLIC.  A  Review  of  American  Progress. 
Svo,  Cloth,  $5  00 ;  Sheep,  $5  50 ;  Half  Morocco,  $T  25. 

Contents. 

Introduction  :  I.  Colonial  Progress.  By  Eugkne  Laweenoe.— II.  Mechanical 
Progress.  By  Edward  H.  Knight— III.  Progress  in  Manufacture.  By 
the  Hon.  David  A.  Wells. — IV.  Agricultural  Progress.     By  Professor 

W.M.  H  BuEWKK V.  The  Development  of  our  Mineral  Resources.     By 

Professor  T.  Stkkhy  Hunt. — VI.  Commercial  Developmeut.  By  Edwak]> 
Atkinson — VII.  Growth  and  Distribution  of  Population.  By  the  Hon. 
Fkanois  a.  Walker.— VIII.  Monetary  Development.  By  Professor  Wil- 
liam G.  Sumner.— IX.  The  Experiment  of  the  Union,  with  its  Prepara- 
tions. By  T.  D.  WooLSEY,  D.D.,  LL.D.— X.  Edncational  Progress.  By 
Eugene  Lawrence. — XI.  Scientific  Progress:  1.  The  Exact  Sciences.  By 
F.  A.  P.  Barnard,  D.D.,  LL.D.  2.  Natural  Science.  By  Professor  Theo- 
dore Gill. —  XII.  A  Century  of  American  Literature.  By  Edwin  P. 
Whipple.  —  XIII.  Progress  of  the  Fine  Arts.  Bv  S.  S.  Conant.  —  XIV. 
Medical  and  Sanitary  Progress.  By  Austin  Flint,  M.D.— XV.  American 
Jurisprudence.  By  Bicnjamin  Vaughan  Ahhott. — XVI.  Humanitariau 
Progress.  By  Charles  L.  Brace — XVII.  Religious  Development.  By 
the  Rev.  John  F.  Hurst,  D.D. 

FORSTER'S  LIFE  OF  DEAN  SWIFT.  The  Early  Life  of  Jonathan  Swift  (1667- 
ITll).    By  John  Forster.    With  Portrait.    Svo,  Cloth,  $2  50. 

GIBBON'S  ROME.  The  History  of  the  Decline  and  Fall  of  the  Roman  Empire. 
By  Edward  Giishon.  With  Notes  by  Rev.  H.  H.  Milman  and  M.  Guizot.  A 
new  cheap  Edition.    With  Index  and  a  Portrait.    6  vols.,  12mo,  Cloth,  $G  00. 

GREEN'S  SHORT  HISTORY  OF  THE  ENGLISH  PEOPLE.  A  Short  History 
of  the  English  People.  By  J.  R.  Green,  M.A.,  Examiner  in  the  School  of 
Modern  History,  Oxford.    With  Tables  and  Colored  Maps.    Svo,  Cloth,  $1  75. 

GROTE'S  HISTORY  OF  GREECE.    12  vols.,  12mo,  Cloth,  $18  00. 

HALLAM'S  CONSTITUTIONAL  HISTORY  OF  ENGLAND.  The  Constitu- 
tional History  of  Ensland,  from  the  Accession  of  Henry  VII.  to  the  Death  of 
George  IL    By  Henry  Hallam.    Svo,  Cloth,  $2  00. 

HALLAM'S  LITERATURE.  Introduction  to  the  Literature  of  Europe  during 
the  Fifteenth,  Sixteenth,  and  Seventeenth  Centuries.  By  Henry  Hallam. 
2  vols.,  Svo,  Cloth,  $4  00. 

HALLAM'S  MIDDLE  AGES.  View  of  the  State  of  Europe  during  the  Middle 
Ages.     By  Henry  Hallam.    Svo,  Cloth,  $2  00. 

HARPER'S  NEW  CLASSICAL  LIBRARY.    Literal  Translations. 

The  following  Volumes  are  now  ready.    12nio,  Cloth,  $1  50  each. 

Cesar.  — Virgil.  —  Sallust.  — Horace. • —  Cicero's  Orations.  —  Cicero's  Of- 
I'lCES,  &c.  —  Cicero  on  Oratory  and  Orators.  —  Tacitus  (2  vols.). — 
Terence.  —  Sophocles.  —  Juvenal.  —  Xenopuon. — -Homer's  Iliad Ho- 
mer's Odyssey. — Herodotus. — Demosthenes. — Tiiucydides.  —  .^schylus. 
— Euripiiies  (2  vols.). — Livy  (2  vols.). — Plato  [Select  Dialogues]. 

HAYDN'S  DICTIONARY  OF  DATES,  relating  to  all  Ages  and  Nations.  For 
Universal  Reference.  Edited  by  Ben.tamin  Vincent,  Assistant  Secretary  and 
Keeper  of  the  Library  of  the  Royal  Institution  of  Great  Britain  ;  and  Revised 
for  the  Use  of  American  Reader.s.     Svo,  Cloth,  15  00  ;  Sheep,  $0  00. 

HILDRETH'S  UNITED  STATES.  History  of  the  United  States.  First  Series  : 
From  the  Discovery  of  the  Continent  to  the  Organization  of  the  Government 
under  the  Federal  Constitution.  Skoond  Series:  From  the  Adoption  of  the 
Federal  Constitution  to  the  End  of  the  Sixteenth  Congress.  By  Riouard 
HiLDRETU.     6  vols.,  Svo,  Cloth,  $1S  00. 

HUME'S  HISTORY  OF  ENGLAND.  The  History  of  England,  from  the  Invasion 
of  Julius  Cffisar  to  the  Abdication  of  James  ll.,  16SS.  By  David  Hume.  A 
new  Edition,  with  the  Author's  Last  Corrections  and  Improvements.  To 
which  is  prefixed  a  short  Account  of  his  Life,  written  by  himself.  With  a 
Portrait  of  the  Author.    C  vols.,  12mo,  Cloth,  $G  00. 


4      Valuable  and  Interesting  Works  for  Public  and  Private  Libraries, 

HUDSON'S  HISTORY  OF  JOURNALISM.  Journalism  iu  the  United  Stales, 
from  1090  to  1S72.     By  Feedeiuo  Hudson.     Svo,  Cloth,  $5  00. 

JEFFERSON'S  DOMESTIC  LIFE.  The  Domestic  Life  of  Thomas  Jefferson : 
compiled  from  Family  Letters  and  Reminiscences,  by  his  Great -Grand- 
daughter, Sakau  N.  Kanuoh'u.    Illustrated.     Crown  Svo,  Cloth,  $2  50. 

JOHNSON'S  COMPLETE  WORKS.  The  Works  of  Samuel  Johnson,  LL.D. 
With  an  Essay  on  his  Life  and  Genius,  by  Aktuur  Mukpuy,  Esq.  With  Por- 
trait.   2  vols.,  Svo,  Cloth,  $4  00. 

KINGLAKE'S  CRIMEAN  WAR.  The  Invasion  of  the  Crimea:  its  Origin,  and 
an  Account  of  its  Progress  down  to  the  Death  of  Lord  Raglan.  Jiy  Alexan- 
BEK  Wii.i.i  AM  KiNGi.AUE.  With  Mups  and  Plans.  Three  Volumes  now  ready. 
12mo,     Cloth,  $2  00  per  vol. 

LAMB'S  COMPLETE  WORKS.  The  Works  of  Charles  Lamb.  Comprising  his 
Letters,  Poems,  Essays  of  Elia,  Essays  upon  Shakspeaie,  Hogarth,  &c.,  and  a 
Sketch  of  his  Life,  with  the  Final  Memorials,  by  T.  Noon  Talfourd.  With 
Portrait.     2  vols.,  12mo,  Cloth,  $3  00. 

LAWRENCE'S  HISTORICAL  STUDIES.  Historical  Studies.  By  Edgene  Law- 
bench.  Containing  the  following  Essays:  The  Bishops  of  Rome.— Leo  and 
Luther.— Loyola  and  thfi  Jesuits.— Ecumenical  Councils.— The  Vaudois.— The 
Huguenots.— The  Church  of  Jerusalem.— Dominic  and  the  Inquisiiiou.— The 
Conquest  of  Ireland.- The  Greek  Church.  Svo,  Cloth,  uncut  edges  and  gilt 
tops,  $3  00. 

LEWIS'S  HISTORY  OP  GERMANY.  A  History  of  Germany,  from  the  Earliest 
Times.  Founded  on  Dr.  David  Mult.er's  "History  of  the  German  People." 
By  Cuarlton  T.  Lewis.    Illustrated.    Crown  Svo,  Cloth,  $2  50. 

LIVINGSTONE'S  SOUTH  AFRICA.  Missionary  Travels  and  Researches  in 
South  AfricLT;  including  a  Sketch  of  Sixteen  Years'  Residence  in  the  Interior 
of  Africa,  and  a  Journey  fnmi  the  Cape  of  Good  Hope  to  Loando  on  the  West 
Coast;  thence  across  the  Continent,  down  the  River  Zambesi,  to  the  Eastern 
Ocean.  By  David  Livingstone,  LL.D.,  D.C.L.  With  Portrait,  Maps,  and  Illus- 
trations.    Svo,  Cloth,  $-4  50. 

LIVINGSTONE'S  ZAMBESL  Narrative  of  an  Expedition  to  the  Zambesi  and 
its  Tributaries,  and  of  the  Discovery  of  the  Lakes  Shirwa  and  Nyassa,  1S58- 
1S64.  By  David  and  Cuarles  Livingstone.  With  Map  and  Illustrations. 
Svo,  Cloth,  $5  00. 

LIVINGSTONE'S  LAST  JOURNALS.  The  Last  Journals  of  David  Living- 
stone, in  Central  Africa,  from  1SG5  to  his  Death.  Continued  by  a  Narrative 
of  his  Last  Moments  and  Suft'erings,  obtained  from  his  Faithful  Servants 
Chuma  and  Susi.  By  Horace  Waixee,  F.R.G.S.,  Eector  of  Twywell,  North- 
ampton. With  Portrait,  Maps,  and  Illustrations.  Svo,  Cloth,  $5  00.  Cheap 
Popular  Edition,  Svo,  Cloth,  with  j\Iap  and  Illustrations,  $2  50. 

LOSSING'S  FIELD-BOOK  OF  THE  REVOLUTION.  Pictorial  Field-Bnok  of 
the  Revolution;  or,  Illustrati<ius  by  Pen  and  Pencil  of  the  Historv,  Biogra- 
phy, Scenery,  Relics,  and  Traditions  of  the  War  for  Independence."  Bv  Ben- 
son J.  LossiNG.  2  vols.,  Svo,  Cloth,  $14  00;  Sheep,  $15  00;  Half  Calf,  $1S  00; 
Full  Turkey  Morocco,  |22  00. 

LOSSING'S  FIELD-BOOK  OP  THE  WAR  OF  1812.  Pictorial  Field-Book  of 
the  War  of  1S12;  or.  Illustrations  by  Pen  and  Pencil  of  the  History,  Biogra- 
phy, Scenery.  Relics,  and  Traditions  of  the  last  Wir  for  American  independ- 
ence. By  Bi'.NsoN  J.  LossiNG.  W^itli  several  hundred  Ensravintrs  on  Wood 
by  Lossing  and  Barritt,  chiefly  from  Original  Sketches  by  the  Author.  lOSS 
pages,  Svo,  Cloth,  $7  00  ;  Sheep,  $S  50;  Half  Calf,  $10  00. 

MACAULAY'S  HISTORY  OP  ENGLAND.  The  History  of  England  from  the 
Accession  of  James  II.  By  Thomas  Babington  Maoaulav.  "With  Portrait. 
5  vols.,  Svo,  Cloth,  $10  00;  12mo,  Cloth,  $5  00. 

MACAULAY'S  LIFE  AND  LETTERS.  The  Life  and  Letters  of  Lord  Macaulay. 
By  his  Nephew,  G.  Otto  Trevei.yan,  M.P.  With  Portrait  on  Steel.  Complete 
in  2  vols.,  Svo,  Cloth,  uncut  edges  and  gilt  tops,  $5  00  ;  Sheep,  $6  00 ;  Half  Calf, 
$9  50;  Tree  Calf,  $15  00. 


Valuable  and  Interesting  Works  for  Public  and  Private  Libraries.      5 

M'CLINTOCK  &  STRONG'S  CYCLOPEDIA.  Oycloptedia  of  Biblical,  Theo- 
logical, and  Ecclesiastical  Literature.  Prepared  by  the  Rev.  John  M'Clin- 
TOGK,  1).D.,  and  Jamics  Steong,  S.T.D.  G  vols,  now  ready.  Royal  Svo.  Price 
per  vol.,  Cloth,  $5  m  ;  Sheep,  $6  00;  Half  Morocco,  $S  00. 

MOHAMMED  AND  MOHAMMEDANISM:  Lectures  Delivered  at  the  Royal 
Institution  of  Great  Britain  iu  February  and  March,  1S74.  By  R.  Bo6\vouTa 
Smith,  M.A.,  Assistant  Master  in  Harrow  School ;  late  Fellow  of  Trinity  Col- 
lege, Oxford.  With  an  Appendix  containing  Emanuel  Deutsch's  Article  on 
"Islam."    l'2mo,  Cloth,  $1  50. 

MOSHEIM'S  ECCLESIASTICAL  HISTORY,  Ancient  and  Modern;  in  which  the 
Rise,  Progress,  and  Variation  of  Church  Power  are  considered  in  their  Con- 
nection with  the  State  of  Learning  and  Philosophy,  and  the  Political  History 
of  Europe  during  that  Period.  Translated,  with  Notes,  &c.,  by  A.  Maolaink, 
D.D.  A  new  Edition,  continued  to  1S26,  by  0.  Cootk,  LL.D.  2  vols.,  Svo, 
Cloth,  $4  00. 

MOTLEY'S  DUTCH  REPUBLIC.  The  Rise  of  the  Dutch  Republic.  A  History. 
By  JouN  LoiiiKOP  MoTi.KY,  LL.D.,  D.C.L.  With  a  Portrait  of  William  of 
Orange.     3  vols.,  Svo,  Cloth,  $10  50. 

MOTLEY'S  UNITED  NETHERLANDS.  History  of  the  United  Netherlands: 
from  the  Death  of  William  the  Silent  to  the  Twelve  Years'  Truce  — 1001). 
With  a  full  View  of  the  English -Dutch  Struggle  against  Spain,  and  of  the 
Origin  and  Destruction  of  the  Spanish  Armadti.  By  Joun  Lotukop  Motlev, 
LL.'D.,  D.C.L.    Portraits.    4  vols.,  Svo,  Cloth,  $14  00. 

MOTLEY'S  LIFE  AND  DEATH  OP  JOHN  OP  BARNEVELD.  The  Life  and 
Death  of  John  of  Barneveld,  Advocate  of  Holland:  with  a  View  of  the  Prima- 
ry Causes  and  Movements  of  "The  Thirty-years'  War."  By  John  Lotukop 
Motley,  LL.D., D.C.L.    Illustrated.    In  2  vols.,  Svo,  Cloth,  $7  00. 

MYERS'S  REMAINS  OF  LOST  EiMPIRES.  Remains  of  Lost  Empires :  Sketches 
of  the  Ruins  of  Palmyra,  Nineveh,  Babylon,  and  Persepolis,  with  some  Notes 
on  India  and  the  Cashmeriau  Himalayas.  By  P.  V.  N.  Myeks.  Illustrated. 
Svo,  Cloth,  $3  50. 

NORDHOFP'S  COMMUNISTIC  SOCIETIES  OP  THE  UNITED  STATES. 
The  Communistic  Societies  of  the  United  States,  from  Personal  Visit  and  Ob- 
servation ;  including  Detailed  Accounts  of  the  Economists,  Zoarites,  Shakers, 
the  Amana,  Oneida,  Bethel,  Aurora,  Icarian,  and  other  existing  Societies. 
With  Particulars  of  their  Religious  Creeds  and  Practices,  their  Social  Theories 
and  Life,  Numbers,  Industries,  and  Present  Condition.  By  Chaki-es  Nobdhopp. 
Illustrations.    Svo,  Cloth,  $4  00. 

EAWLINSON'S  MANUAL  OF  ANCIENT  HISTORY.  A  Manual  of  Ancient 
History,  from  the  Earliest  Times  to  the  Fall  of  the  Western  Empire.  Com- 
prising the  History  of  Chaldiea,  Assyria,  Media,  Babylonia,  Lydia,  Phoenicia, 
Syria,  Judiea,  Egypt,  Carthage,  Persia,  Greece,  Macedonia,  Parthia,  and  Rome. 
By  George  Rawi.inson,  M.A.,  Camden  Professor  of  Ancient  History  in  the 
University  of  Oxford.     12mo,  Cloth,  $1  75. 

RECLUS'S  EARTH.  The  Earth  :  a  Descriptive  History  of  the  Phenomena  of  the 
Life  of  the  Globe.  Bv  ISi.isee  Reclus.  With  234  Maps  and  Illustrations,  and 
23  Page  Maps  printed  in  Colors.    Svo,  Cloth,  $5  00. 

RECLUS'S  OCEAN.  The  Ocean,  Atmosphere,  and  Life.  Being  the  Second  Series 
of  a  Descriptive  History  of  the  Life  of  the  Globe.  By  ISi.isee  Reolhs.  Pro- 
fusely Illustrated  with  2.'>0  Maps  or  Figures,  and  27  Maps  printed  in  Colors. 
Svo,  Cloth,  $0  00. 

SCHWEINFURTH'S  HEART  OF  AFRICA.  The  Heart  of  Africa.  Three  Years' 
Travels  and  Adventures  in  the  Unexplored  Regions  of  the  Centre  of  Africa. 
From  1S6S  to  1S71.  By  Dr.  Georg  Soiiweinedrth.  Translated  by  Em.en  E. 
Pkewer.  With  an  Introductiim  by  Winwooti  Reape.  Illustrated  by  about 
130  Woodcuts  from  Drawings  made  by  the  Author,  and  with  two  Maps.  2  vols., 
Svo,  Cloth,  $S  00. 

SHAKSPEARE.  The  Dramatic  Works  of  William  Shakspeare.  With  Correc- 
tions and  Notes.  Engravings.  0  vols.,  12mo,  Cloth,  $9  00.  2  vols.,  Svo, 
Cloth,  $4  00. 


6      Valuable  and  Interesting  Works  for  Public  and  Private  Libraries. 

SMILES'S  HISTORY  OF  THE  HUGUENOTS.  The  Hugueuots :  their  Settle- 
ments, Churches,  aud  Industries  in  England  and  Ireland.  By  Samukl  Smiles. 
Witli  an  Appendix  relating  to  the  Huguenots  in  America.  Crown  Svo,  Cloth, 
$2  00. 

SMILES'S  HUGUENOTS  AFTER  THE  REVOCATION.  The  Hugueuots  iu 
France  after  the  Revocation  of  the  Edict  of  Nantes ;  with  a  Visit  to  the 
Country  of  the  Vaudois.    By  Samuel  Smiles.    Crown  Svo,  Cloth,  $2  00. 

SMILES'S  LIFE  OF  THE  STEPHENSONS.  The  Life  of  George  Stephenson, 
and  of  his  Sou,  Robert  Stephenson  ;  comprising,  also,  a  History  of  the  In- 
vention and  Introduction  of  the  Railway  Locomotive.  By  Samuel  Smiles. 
With  Steel  Portraits  aud  numerous  Illustrations.    Svo,  Cloth,  $3  00. 

STRICKLAND'S  (Miss)  QUEENS  OP  SCOTLAND.  Lives  of  the  Queens  of 
Scotland  and  English  Princesses  connected  with  the  Regal  Succession  of 
Great  Britain.    By  Agnes  Strickland.    S  vols.,  12mo,  Cloth,  $12  00. 

THE  STUDENT'S  SERIES.    With  Maps  aud  Illustrations.     12mo,  Cloth,  $2  00 

per  volume. 

Fkanoe. — Gibbon. — Greece. — Hume. — Rome  (by  Liddell). — Old  Testament 
HtSTouv. — New  Testament  History. — Strickland's  Queens  of  England 
(Abridged). — Anoient  History  of  tue  East. — Hallam's  Middle  Ages. 

— Hallam's  Constitutional  History  of  England Lyeli.'s  Elements 

OF  Geology. — Merivale's  General  History  of  Rome. — Cox's  General 
History  of  Greecr. — Classical  Dictionary. 

TENNYSON'S  COMPLETE  POEMS.  The  Poetical  Works  of  Alfred  Tennyson, 
Poet  Laureate.  With  numerous  Illustrations  bv  Eminent  Artists,  and  Three 
Characteristic  Portraits.    Svo,  Paper,  $1  00;  Cloth,  $1  50. 

THOMSON'S  LAND  AND  THE  BOOK.  The  Land  and  the  Book;  or,  Biblical 
Illustrations  drawn  from  the  Manners  and  Customs,  the  Scenes  and  the  Scen- 
ery of  the  Holy  Laud.  By  W.  M.  Thomson,  D.D.,  Twenty-five  Years  a  Mis- 
sionary of  the  A.B.C.F.M.  in  Syria  and  Palestine.  With  two  elaborate  Maps 
of  Palestine,  an  accurate  Plan  of  Jerusalem,  and  several  hundred  Engravings, 
representing  the  Scenery,  Topography,  and  Productions  of  the  Holy  Tjaud, 
and  the  Costumes,  Manners,  and  Habits  of  the  People.  2  vols.,  12mo,  Cloth, 
$5  00. 

VAN-LENNEP'S  BIBLE  LANDS.  Bible  Lands:  their  Modern  Customs  and 
Manners  Illustrative  of  Scripture.  By  the  Rev.  Henry  J.  Van-Lennep,  D.D. 
Illustrated  with  upward  of  350  Wood  Engravings  and  two  Colored  Maps. 
83S  pp., Svo,  Cloth,  $5  00  ;  Sheep,  $C  00 ;  Half  Morocco,  $S  00. 

VINCENT'S  LAND  OF  THE  WHITE  ELEPHANT.  The  Land  of  the  AVhite 
Elephant:  Sights  and  Scenes  in  Southeastern  Asia.  A  Personal  Narrative 
of  Travel  and  Adventure  in  Farther  India,  embracing  the  Countries  of  Bur- 
ma, Siam,  Cambodia,  and  Cochin -China  (1S71-2).  By  Frank  Vincent,  Jr. 
Illustrated  with  Maps,  Plans,  aud  Woodcuts.    Crown  Svo,  Cloth,  $3  50. 

WALLACE'S  GEOGRAPHICAL  DISTRIBUTION  OF  ANIMALS.  The  Geo- 
graphical Distribution  of  Animals.  With  a  Study  of  the  Relations  of  Living 
and  E.xtinct  Faunas  as  Elucidating  the  Past  Changes  of  tlie  Earth's  Surface. 
By  Alfred  Russel  Wallace.  With  Maps  and  Illustratious.  In  2  vols.,  Svo, 
Cloth,  $10  00. 

WALLACE'S  MALAY  ARCHIPELAGO.  The  Malay  Archipelago:  the  Land  of 
the  Oraug-Utan  and  the  Bird  of  Paradise.  A  Narrative  of  Travel,  1S54-1S62. 
With  Studies  of  Man  and  Nature.  By  Alfred  Russel  Wallace.  With  Ten 
Maps  and  Fifty-one  Elegant  Illustratious.     Crown  Svo,  Cloth,  $2  50. 

WHITE'S  MASSACRE  OF  ST.  BARTHOLOMEW.  The  Massacre  of  St.  Bar- 
tholomew :  Preceded  by  a  History  of  the  Religious  Wars  in  the  Reign  of 
Charles  IX.  By  Henry'Wiiitb,  M.A.  With  Illustrations.  Crown  Svo,  Cloth, 
$1  75. 

WOOD'S  HOMES  WITHOUT  HANDS.  Homes  Without  Hands :  beino;  a  Descrip- 
tion of  the  Habitations  of  Animals,  classed  according  to  their  Principle  of  Con- 
struction.   By  J.  G.  Wood,  M.A.,  F.L.S.    Illustrated.    Svo,  Cloth,  $4  50. 

YONGE'S  LIFE  OF  MARIE  ANTOINETTE.  The  Life  of  Marie  Antoinette, 
Queen  of  France.  Bv  Chai:les  Duke  Yonge,  Regius  Professor  of  Modern 
History  and  English  Literature  in  Queen's  College,  Belfast.  With  Portrait. 
Crown  Svo,  Cloth,  $2  50. 


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